Shepherd's Song
by uprisingdragon
Summary: After waking up with no memory, Robin is thrust head-first into the world of Marching Band with her new friend and fellow drum major, Chrom. Everything seems innocent until Plegia Academy starts to overstep their boundaries. Not only that, but Robin has a bad feeling that someone is after her. Band/High School AU.
1. Chapter 1 Pilot

**Hey guys! So, I beat this game about two weeks ago and am EXTREMELY obsessed with it! I'm not going to give away any of my pairings accept for the fact that this is a Chrom/F!Robin story. It also revolves mainly around marching band, but the first two chapters will be focusing more on introductions rather then actual band. I hope you guys enjoy!**

**I do not own any of the characters from Fire Emblem**

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Chapter 1: Prologue

Her vision was clouded with inky darkness, preventing her from seeing or moving. She attempted to talk, but no words came out. The only  
thing she could feel was intense pain throbbing on her stomach and forearms.

She tried to force her eyes open, but nothing was working. The only sensation she could feel was her hot tears trying to force their way out of her eyes. Was she dead? The girl inhaled sharply, fear bubbling in her stomach; she didn't want to die_," Someone help me, please! I_  
_don't know where I am! Help me!"_

"Chrom, we have to do something."

She flinched; someone was talking. She wasn't dead, which meant that if she tried hard enough, she would be able to wake up. The girl took a deep breath before mustering up as much strength as she could. Her eyes slowly began to blink open, blinding her with a bright light. She recoiled and squinted, preventing herself from shutting her eyes again. There was no way that she was returning to that pitch black hell that she had just awoken from.

"What do you propose we do?" A deep voice asked. Her stomach fluttered as soon as she heard it; why on earth did that voice sound so familiar? Maybe this person would help her!

A feminine voice from earlier paused," Eh...I don't know!"

The girl took a deep breath and pulled her eyes open, adjusting to the sunlight faster than she had earlier. She was immediately met with two faces; The feminine voice had a head of light blonde hair pulled into two ponytails and a white headband. Her expression became relieved when she woke up, but she couldn't help but notice a bit of disappointment in her teal eyes.

Her eyes flickered to the boy next to her; he had dark blue hair and eyes the color of an afternoon sky with a strong jaw. Unlike his sister, he hid his emotions well. In fact, all she saw was kindness in his features as he released the breath he had been holding," I see you're awake now."

The blonde smiled warmly, trying to follow the boy's example without giving her nerves away," Hey there."

The blue haired boy rolled his eyes fondly at the girl before turning his attention back to her," There are better places to take a nap than on the ground, you know," She watched as he held his hand out to her," Give me your hand."

She observed it wearily before deciding that if they were offering to help her, they wouldn't suddenly change character and attack. She carefully tucked her hand in his, surprised to see that it had an odd looking purple tattoo on it.

Before she could give the mark a second thought, the boy hoisted her up," I haven't seen you around her before. Are you new to Ylisse High?"

She stumbled slightly so that she was mere inches away from his face," C-Chrom!"

The teenage boy's eyes widened in surprise as he dropped her hand. His friend blinked slowly, trying to process what just happened," Do you  
know her?"

"I'm sorry to say I don't," The boy, Chrom, responded," Have we met?"

"Chrom! Lissa! What is taking you two so long? I sent you out here to help look for that box of reeds that Ricken dropped, but-" The girl watched as a young man with messy brown hair approached them, his shocked look quickly forming into a suspicious one," Who is this?"

The blonde, Lissa, blew a stray piece of hair from her face," Oh stop being such a worry-wart, Frederick! She's perfectly harmless...I think," Just to be safe, she took one step closer to the man," I mean, she knows who Chrom is so she can't be that much trouble...right?"

"Many people know who Chrom is, so that doesn't automatically make her a friend. Whether we like it or not, this girl might be a spy from Plegia Academy. How long has she been watching?" Frederick questioned seriously.

She frowned and crossed her arms in defense, nerves overtaking her. What should she say? She couldn't say that she wasn't from Plegia Academy; she had no idea if it were true or not. She wanted to tell them that she was safe, but she didn't know if she was.

...

Oh gods! She didn't know who she was! This entire time she had been focusing on where she was and who the others were instead of asking  
herself who she was! Suddenly, it felt hard to breath. Where was she going to go? She had nowhere to live. She had no relations that she knew of. How was she going to survive on her own?

"Lighten up, Frederick. She just woke up-" Chrom turned to face her, only to see her knees wobbling," Hey!" The blue haired boy rushed over  
to her and steadied her, unintentionally making her flinch," Are you okay? What's going on?"

She rubbed her arms, trying to sooth the pain that suddenly prickled on her skin. Why did it hurt so badly? His grip wasn't tight enough to  
bruise her. In fact, his touch could only be described as warm. That only meant that something was horribly wrong, and she could be in a lot more trouble than she thought. She combed her white hair back and sighed shakily," I-I don't know who I am."

Frederick glared her," If this is some kind of a joke-"

"I don't think it's a joke," Chrom stated firmly.

"Why is it that she can remember your name and not her own? It's too suspicious."

Robin felt herself tense up again," I'm not lying! I swear, I'm telling you the truth! Please believe me!"

The teenager watched her carefully, trying to figure out if she was messing with them. He glanced at Lissa, who nodded confidently. That seemed to be enough to help him make a choice," Frederick, if she is telling the truth, we can't just leave her here alone and confused," He smirked," What kind of Shepards would we be then?"

"You're too trusting."

"You're too weary, Mr. Wary!"

He growled," It's Mr. Warry."

"Robin!" The two flipped around to the amnesiac, only to see her smiling for the first time since she woke up," I remember my name! It's Robin!" She didn't miss Chrom mumble something about her name being weird, but she decided to ignore it.

Lissa relaxed when she saw the white haired girl grin," Now that we know your name, maybe we can help you! We should take her to Emm! She always knows what to do in a crisis."

"That is a horrible idea-"

Chrom sent Frederick a glare," It's the best idea we've got."

The man clenched and unclenched his fists with an annoyed look on his face," Have you forgotten that Emmeryn is at a conference this  
weekend? That's why you're with me in the first place; I'm babysitting you."

"We're not babies!" They cried in unison.

The untrusting man finally cracked a smile," Then I suggest you stop acting like ones," His turned to Robin, his face becoming solemn once again. He seemed to be having a hard time trying to decide something. After a few seconds of unsettling silence, he spoke up," As a teacher, I swore that I'd help any child that needs me. If you honestly believe that this girl will do us no harm, I will allow her to come with us."

"Do I have any say in this?" Robin squeaked. The three thought highly of this Emmeryn character by the sounds of it, but there was always the risk that she could be a police woman or an orphanage warden.

The blue haired boy smiled reassuringly," Don't worry, we do not intend to do you any harm. This is just an odd situation and we want to make sure that you are taken care of."

"Taken care of?!"

He cringed," Sorry, that came out wrong. What I meant was that we want to help you as much as we can. There's nothing to be scared of," To prove his point, he held his hand out again.

Robin analyzed the situation in her head a few times and slumped her shoulders in defeat; they were her best bet right now, and she really didn't want to spend the night in an alley. She slipped her hand in his and smiled nervously.

Lissa giggled blissfully and took her other hand," Great! I'm sure we'll be good friends! My name is Lissa Exalt, and you know my dork of an older brother, Chrom. The stick in the mud over there is Mr. Warry, but we call him Frederick because we've been friends for a really long time. He's the band teacher here!"

The white haired girl felt her cheeks warm up as she anticipated the embarrassment she was about to endure," Where exactly is here?"

"We are in the township of Ylisse, more specifically Ylisse High School," Frederick narrowed his eyes at her," You are quite the actress, but I still don't believe you. This is not sensible."

"Don't worry, I understand! If I were in your place, I'd be just as wary as-" Before she could finish, the Exalt siblings burst out laughing," What? What did I say?"

The brown haired man leered at the three," Don't ask. Now, if we are done, did you or did you not find Ricken's reeds?"

Lissa held up a small box," Right here!"

"Good, he'll be happy to see them again. Now that we've found them, I think we can return home. I have to lock up my classroom, but you three can meet me by the car. I shouldn't be long."

The brother and sister nodded happily and pulled Robin in the direction of the parking lot," I'm so excited to get to know you better! Like I said earlier, I'm absolutely positive that we'll be close, because I don't back out on those I care about," Lissa skipped a little," Ooh, I can't wait to introduce you to the others! Maribelle is my best friend, but she is sort of mean. You'll just have to get used to it-" She was interrupted by a frenzied yell from behind them. The blonde flipped around and gasped," Chrom, look!"

The trio turned around, only to see a dumpster spewing out flames. Frederick stood to the side with a fire extinguisher, yelling something about saving the sheets. Chrom caught on quickly," Dammit, they're burning the band music!"

He was about to take off, but Lissa yanked on his arm," Wait! What about Robin?"

"Unless she's on fire too, she can wait," Without another thought, he took off to help Frederick, dragging his younger sister with him. The white haired girl was about to follow, but a mischievous snicker from a nearby bush made her stop.

Robin didn't hesitate reaching inside the shrubbery and pulling a brown haired teenager out," Did you burn the music?"

The kid smirked at with a cocky expression," Maybe I did, maybe I didn't."

She growled in frustration and grabbed his collar, shoving him into the school wall with a surprising amount of fury. Was she this temperamental before she lost her memories? Robin shook the thought away; there were more important matters at hand," These are nice people! Why on earth would you do something mean to them? What have they done to you?"

"That's none of your business," He spat on her face and yanked himself from her hold, the smug look returning in his features," Thanks for distracting them earlier; I couldn't have broken in without your help."

A distraction? Was that was she was? Was that why she unconscious in a field, practically waiting for someone to check up on her? Anger boiled inside of her," Are you saying that you're the one that did this to me?!" The boy shrugged and turned around, preparing to bolt. In a split second, Robin decided she wasn't going to let that happen. She let out a battle cry and leapt forward, tackling him onto the ground," Did you do this to me?!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Did you knock me out and leave me to die without any memories?!"

The boy's face was blank," No. I'm just lucky that you were because-" Robin interrupted him by socking him in the nose. Her fists screamed  
from the impact, but it was all worth it when she heard his bone crack. The boy yelped and shoved her off of him, making sure to kick her back down before she could attack again," You're fucking crazy!"

"Robin!"

The brown haired boy grimaced and took off before her reinforcements came. She felt someone gently bring her into a sitting position," Robin, are you alright?"

She pointed at the boy," He's the one that burned your music! I tried to stop him, but I got distracted and he got away. I'm sorry."

Lissa, the one who helped her up, gave her a reassuring smile," That's alright! You tried to stop him, and that was very brave. Not to mention the fact that he gave you a pretty hard kick to the head," She focused her attention on the wound, sticking her tongue out slightly in the process," It left a cut, but you won't need stitches. Here, hold this up to it," She pulled a pack of tissues out of her pocket and handed one to her," We want to stop the bleeding."

Robin did as she was told," I still feel bad about letting him go."

"Like I said, it's not that big of a problem. Sure, Chrom and Frederick are going to be mad that he got away, but for an entirely different reason. You see, they're both very...Uh...competitive in a way."

"Oh?"

"They like to fight," Lissa answered bluntly," They'll probably be more angry at the fact that they didn't get to battle him in your place."

The white haired girl chuckled at the thought," Well, I guess that does make me feel a little better. Thanks, Lissa, you've been a real help."

Shock was evident on the girl's face," Really? Do you mean that?"

"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"

The blonde fiddled with the hem of her skirt," My brother thinks I'm delicate because whenever I get dragged into one of his stupid fights I back out. It may be surprising, but I'm not very good at defending myself," She frowned and leaned against the wall," I'm good at other things, like cleaning up the wounds he brings back. You see, I'm studying so that I can become a doctor someday. Hey! What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Robin bit her lip," Uh..."

"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! I completely forgot that-"

"No, please don't treat me like an amnesiac! I can answer your question...you're just going to have to give me some time to remember."

Lissa nodded giddily," Time, huh? I guess I'll have to stick around to make sure you tell me that answer...That means that we're friends, right?"

The white haired girl felt her heart flutter; despite everything that had just happened, she still wanted to befriend her? Robin reached forward and grabbed both of Lissa's hands, a giant smile present on her face," Of course!"

"Lissa!" The two girls spun around to face the blonde's brother," I told you to wait by the car! Do you have any idea how worried you made me?"

She hopped onto her feet," I was going to go, but Robin wasn't there. I was just making sure that she was alright, which it turns out she wasn't. Did you know that she tried to fight that kid who burned the band music by herself-"

"Lissa..."

Said girl ignored Robin and continued," I think she broke his nose, because it was spurting out tons of blood! He was crying as he left-"

"Lissa!"

"Unfortunately, he was able to kick her head before he got away," The younger sister shoved her toe into the dirt," What a jerk!"

Chrom held back a laugh as he pulled Robin onto her feet again," You broke his nose?"

"...Yeah."

He sniggered," That's hilarious! I bet that dastard deserved it. Hah! Anyways, Frederick and I put the fire out, but we lost all of our  
marching band material."

Lissa gasped," Band Camp is this week! How are we supposed to put together an entire show in three days?"

"Fortunately, Frederick was able to find some music from a few years back. The only problem is that we don't have any of the spots worked out anymore. We have to come up with an entirely new drill."

Although Robin didn't understand any of this, the tone of his voice made it sound bad," I'm sorry I didn't stop him."

"Hey, don't worry about it! It wasn't your battle to fight," Sensing her insecurity on the matter, he took her hand in his for the third time that day," Come on; Frederick's waiting for us by the car, and I don't want to keep him waiting. He's too weary for his own good."

* * *

Frederick lived in a small, two bedroom house that was about a block away from the school. It was short and semi run-down with smooth blue  
walls. Lissa had taken it upon herself to teach everything she could to Robin before band camp started so that she wouldn't be lost, so as soon as the car stopped, the blonde grabbed her new friend's hand and pulled her inside," This is Frederick's house! There are two bedrooms to the right, a living room straight ahead, the kitchen to your left, and a back porch on the other side of the living room. The guest room is right across the hall from Frederick's bedroom and the bathroom is in that small cubby there. I usually sleep in the guest room because there's only one bed. Chrom often stays on the couch, but I'm sure he'll let you have it!"

Said boy groaned," Why?"

"She's a lady and-" Much to the girls' surprise, Chrom snorted," Is there something you'd like to say, brother?"

"Er, no... No, it's nothing. It's just that...Well, I just didn't consider Robin the type to care after beauty and such...," He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed sheepishly," I suppose I've never really thought of her as a lady."

Lissa's eyes widened," Uh, I think-"

"Excuse me?" Robin spat. Sure, she did just break a guy's nose and she should be more worried about her lost memory, but for some reason, his  
comment stung.

"You two shouldn't-"

He cringed at his own stupidity," No! I mean—I didn't mean—not like that! That is to say, a lady, per se... Er... You know, how you fight and you're independent, and... Not to say a lady can't fight, but...Gods, this is coming out all wrong."

Frederick stuck his head in the living room," Robin, do you eat piz-"

Lissa pounced on him," Yes, she does! Come on, let's get the food!" She grabbed his wrist and tugged him out the door," Bye guys! Don't kill each other!"

They barely noticed that the others had left," What makes me un-lady-like, huh?"

The blue haired boy narrowed his eyes; this was a trick question. If he tried to prove his point, she would get defensive again. If he lied, she call him out on it. Jeez, women were complicated,"...It's just my image of a lady is someone so prim and proper...perfumed, and pretty... Nothing like you at all! When I look at you, I just don't see a lady. Does that— ...Er, Robin? What... What are you doing with that book?"

"I'm thinking a sharp blow to the head might knock some sense into you," She growled menacingly.

"N-no, wait! It was just a joke! Ha ha...ha?" Robin lost it at that point; she let out a battle cry and tackled Chrom onto the ground,  
repeatedly smacking his head with her book," OW! I'm sorr-OUCH! Robin, please-AH!"

"I'll show you who is a lady!"

He managed to yank the book out of her hands, chucking it across the room so that she couldn't hit him anymore. Seeing that she was still surprised by his sudden move, he took the upper hand and pushed her off of him. She squeaked as he rolled on top of her and grabbed her wrists, effectively pinning her to the ground," Calm down!"

Robin tried to wriggle herself from underneath him, but he was stronger than she originally thought," Let me go, Chrom!"

"No! This is what I meant earlier! A lady would never-" Without warning, she kneed his groin and kicked him off of her. He let out a high yelp and clutched it, pain evident in his features," Dammit, Robin."

The teenager rubbed her wrists wearily, the anger evaporating into thin air. What had she done? He was one of her only friends and she had scared him off by hitting him where the sun doesn't shine," Sorry. I didn't mean to take it that far."

Much to her surprise, Chrom chucked a pillow at her head, causing her white hair to fly everywhere. The sight must've been extremely funny, because the blue haired boy burst out laughing," You should've seen your face!" He cried, wiping stray tears from his face," N-Now we're even!"

His smile proved to be contagious, because soon she was chuckling with him," Yeah, I guess it was kind of funny," Her response only caused him to laugh harder," Chrom? Are you alright? You're crying."

"I'm fine," He wheezed, desperately trying to catch his breath," If only all ladies were as fun as you!"

"Oh, so I'm a lady now?" She teased, hugging the pillow to her stomach," Did my womanly wiles change your mind?"

"Womanly wiles?" He reached forward and yanked the plush from her, smacking her with it again," Where do you come up with these things?"

Robin rolled her eyes and tried to pull her frazzled hair back into it's original ponytail. He was such a dork; one minute he was rough-housing with her, the next he was giggling like an idiot. She tried to reach for her pillow again, but he hopped to his feet and held it high above his head. She giggled at first, but once she realized that her head only reached his nose, it became obvious that there was no way to retrieve the pillow," Chrom, give me-"

He snickered," You're short, just like Lissa!"

"What? No way! I'm a few inches taller than her! You're just abnormally tall!"

Their friendly banter continued back and forth until they ran out of insults and energy. The teasing eventually shifted into a series of  
conversations, ranging from him introducing some band instruments to her to complaining about his favorite football team's recent failures. Since she didn't have much to talk about in the first place, Robin mainly listened and occasionally added in her opinion. This continued until the others returned with the pizza. Frederick eventually dragged Chrom away, stating that if he was to be a proper drum major, he would have to help him recreate the show.

Eventually the sun set and Lissa sleepily bid her new friend goodnight, leaving her to listen as Frederick and Chrom tried to figure out new positions. She politely asked if there was anything she could do to help, but they turned her away and told her to get some rest.

She didn't even realize that she had fallen asleep until she woke up on the couch. Her eyes scanned the room until they fell on a nearby clock; 12:37 A.M.. Robin grumbled irritably before pushing herself up to get a drink of water. What she saw inside caused her to try and contain her giggling," Chrom? What are you still doing awake?"

The teenager grunted in acknowledgement, but didn't peel his eyes away from the mass piles of papers surrounding him. His blue sweatshirt's sleeves had been rolled up to his elbows, revealing a pair of strong forearms. His cobalt hair was rustled and sticking in a plethora of different directions, and his sky-colored eyes had dark circles around them. The kitchen floor was littered with crumpled up sheets of paper.

Robin bit her lip and stalked forward, peeking over her new friend's shoulder to see what he was working on," What's that?"

"I have to make a new drill," He grumbled.

"And a drill is..."

"It's the layout of where each band member is supposed to go in order to form the pictures or arrangements that we are trying to create."

Robin nodded in understanding and went to fetch two sodas from the fridge," How far are you?"

"I'm halfway through the first piece."

"How many pieces are there?"

"Three."

"Yikes."

He groaned before banging his head on the table," I'm never going to get this done. Why the heck did I tell Frederick to go to sleep? This is harder than it looks."

"Why don't you move the next group there?"

Chrom blinked a few times before considering her suggestion. After a few seconds of pondering, he pulled out a sheet and scribbled it down, a satisfied smile finding it's way into his features," That...actually works out perfectly. Were you a band extraordinaire before you lost your memories?"

She shrugged," I don't know, maybe-ooh, wait! You can move the F-people-"

"The flutes."

"Right. You can move them on the 45 mark and the T-people in a circle above them to form a flower of sorts!"

He stared at her for a full minute before swiping some discarded paper off of the chair next to him and motioning for her to sit down. She grinned gleefully and accepted his offer, handing him one of the caffeinated beverages. Chrom pulled out his laptop from a giant pile of rejected ideas and stuck one of his headphones in her ear," Okay, these are the pieces we'll be playing, you'll need to know what the music sounds like if you're going to help. The first song is called..."


	2. Chapter 2 Unwelcome Change

**Hey guys! Hopefully my updates will be weekly, so keep an eye out! I'm introducing a bunch of characters in this chapter (including a few ones that come in halfway through the game) so hold onto your hats!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Chapter 2: Unwelcome Change

_"This is it! Our final battle! You're one of us, Robin, and no "destiny" can change that. Now let's beat this dastard and be done_  
_with it!"_

_Robin held the gun tightly in her hand, trying desperately to hide the fact that she was shaking. Apparently she wasn't doing too good of a job, because Chrom took her hand in his and squeezed it," Don't worry;I'm not going to let anything happen to you."_

_"Gya ha ha! Fools!" The duo flipped around, only to see a tall man with tan skin and unruly black hair with a machine gun at ready," Try all you want! You cannot unwrite what is already written!"_

_Time passed a blur with only the sounds of gunshots playing in the background. When her mind finally cleared up, she saw the machine gun man collapsing onto the ground with an unnerving smirk on his face. Chrom didn't notice and spun around with a bright demeanor. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted," This isn't over," The man hissed. Suddenly, he pulled out a hand gun and pointed at them," Damn you BOTH!"_

"Robin? Robin, wake up!"

_Before she could process what she was doing, Robin shoved Chrom out of the way and took the hit. She winced and gripped the spot where she had been shot, surprised to find that it was a dart that penetrated her, not a bullet._

"Come on, we gotta go! I know you stayed up most of the night, but we've got to go get Emmeryn from Rosanne."

Robin was yanked from her dreams when her source of oxygen was cut off. It took her milliseconds to fling her eyes open," BWARG! What-Gangsters, machine guns, gangsters with machine guns! They're all...wait a minute...it was just a dream," She unconsciously touched the spot where the dart had hit," What's going on?"

Lissa giggled when her friend finally woke up and laid a cup of coffee in front of her," Bwarg? Oh gods, what a silly thing to say! You wouldn't wake up, so I plugged your nose to see if it would help! Sorry about this, but Emm's train got canceled because someone tried to sneak a bomb onboard. We have to go pick her up."

The white haired girl rubbed her eyes and glanced over at the empty spot where the drum major had been sleeping," Where'd Chrom go?"

"He's drinking as much caffeine as he can to make it through the day," Lissa giggled," He said that he accidentally fell asleep while you two were working on the new drill and feels horrible about it. Personally, I think you should blackmail him into buying us breakfast, but-"

"Don't listen to her," Said boy grumbled as he walked back into the kitchen," The only person I owe is you, not the two lazies who slept through the night."

Lissa frowned," Oh, phooey! You're no fun!"

If she had the energy to do so, Robin would've giggled at their exchange. Instead, she laid her head back in the table," Where is Rosanne?"

"About two hours away," Chrom answered grudgingly," It's going to be a long trip, so you might want to bring something to do."

"I don't own anything."

He stared at her for a few minutes in confusion before realization hit him," Gods, I'm sorry! I keep forgetting that you don't have any memories."

Robin waved it off," It's alright. I'm going to have to get used to it sooner or later," She took a sip of coffee, only to discover that it was the worst tasting beverage in existence. Her face scrunched up in disgust as she pushed it back towards Lissa," What the heck is that?"

"Coffee. It's full of caffeine and-what are you doing?"

She ripped open the cupboards and began poking around," It tastes horrible, but I like the idea of it helping me stay awake. I'm trying to find something sweet to help make it tolerable."

"Good luck with that," Chrom smirked," The closest thing Frederick has to candy is peanut butter."

Robin paused thoughtfully," Peanut butter, huh?" She grabbed the container from it's rightful spot, along with some cinnamon and an apple. The teenager then proceeded to cut two slices from the apple and dropped them in her mug, along with a spoonful of peanut butter  
and a sprinkle of cinnamon. After stirring vigilantly, she took a hesitant sip," Eh, good enough."

Lissa looked like she wanted to puke and Chrom just seemed awestruck," You just put peanut butter in your coffee."

She shrugged nonchalantly," Yup. It tastes better now."

The blonde shuddered," It sounds disgusting."

"Once you get over the occasional apple chunk, it's not half bad," Robin answered as she began to eat the leftover fruit for breakfast," What do you guys put in your coffee?"

"I don't drink coffee," Chrom replied, holding up his pop as an example," I think that it's terrible."

"I put cream in it like a _normal_ person."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

As soon as they got to the car, Robin fell back asleep. Chrom beat his sister to the front seat, so the blonde was forced to sit in the back with the napping teen while Frederick drove. The three passed the time by chatting and testing to see if the white haired girl was actually awake or not. By the time they finally reached Rosanne, Robin was still out cold.

Lissa nervously rubbed her hands together," Eh, I woke her up last time. I think she'll get mad if I do it again."

"I guess that leaves the job to me," Chrom grumbled. He opened the car door and gently shook her shoulder," Come on, Robin. We're here."

Much to the blonde's shock, the teenager yawned cutely before sitting up," Sorry, I didn't realize I had drifted off."

Lissa huffed," Oh, so you wake up easily when it's him?"

She glared at her playfully," Maybe it's because he doesn't try to kill me by cutting off my source of oxygen," Suddenly, her stomach growled, causing her face to turn a light shade of pink.

"I guess that's my cue," Chrom chuckled," I did say something about owning you breakfast, did I not?"

She eyes widened," Really? You'll actually buy me food?"

"I said I would," He replied, hooking his arm in hers," Come on, if we walk long enough, we'll find somewhere to eat."

Lissa frowned," What about me?!"

"Buy your own food!"

The blonde crossed her arms angrily," That's not fair!" Unfortunately, her brother decided to ignore her. Robin sent her an apologetic look before getting carted away by the blue haired boy," Frederick, we should get some breakfast ourselves."

Her band teacher nodded in agreement as he locked up the car," That would be wise, seeing that neither of us ate before we left. Where would you-" He was interrupted when his phone rang," Yes?...Miss Exalt?...Where are you?...What do you mean you're-...don't move, I'll be right there," He shut his electronic off and pointed to a nearby bench," Lissa, stay here. Miss Exalt is lost and has requested for me to find her."

The blonde gasped in concern," Oh no, is she okay?"

"She's fine, but I need to retrieve her as soon as possible. I'm sure that Chrom and Robin will return soon and accompany you, but for now, I need to find your sister as soon as possible."

"Maybe I can help-"

Frederick shot her a desperate look," I'm venturing onto the bad side of town, and I don't want you getting hurt. Please stay here."

Lissa slumped her shoulders in defeat," Okay, I won't move a muscle."

She watched as her guardian drove away, leaving her with nothing to do but sit on a nearby bench. At first, she was just bored, but after half an hour she became worried. Where were her companions? Were they alright? She hoped that Frederick and Emmeryn were safe from the dangers that the dark side of town seemed to hold.

Lissa was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't notice when a man sat next to her. It was only when he began scooting closer that she acknowledged him," You..." he started, his gaze flickering behind her," Are you alone?"

For a second, the world stopped making noise, leaving Lissa with an odd buzzing in her ears," W-what?"

"Just wondering."

"Just..." She shook her head, sliding as far away from him as the bench would allow.

Just as it seemed the man would come and sit closer, two boys in sat in the space between the two, chattering about something she was too relieved to hear. Lissa stared straight ahead, resting her chin in the palm of her hand. This was going to be a long day.

Apparently she was sitting at a bus-stop, because a bus arrived about five minutes later. The two boys hopped onboard without a care in the world, reminding the blonde of when Chrom and her were children. She smiled gently and checked her phone again, wondering if she should call them to see how they were doing.

Suddenly, the creep from earlier slid right next to her," What's up, babe?"

His hot breath brushed against her neck and caused her to shake. She couldn't fight! How was she supposed to shake him off? Lissa shuddered," Please-"

"How about we go somewhere more," He licked his lips wolfishly," Private?"

"W-What?" She was continuing to get more and more scared, and found herself desperately wishing that Chrom and Robin would return in any moment. They would've beaten this guy to a pulp if they weren't-

"I advise you to stay away from her if you don't want me to call the police."

Both Lissa and the predator flipped around to see a young man with choppy blue hair and loose clothing. If that wasn't odd enough, he was wearing sunglasses large enough to hide most of his features. At first the bad guy seemed nervous, but his eyes trailed down to the boy's seemingly empty pockets. The man smirked," I think that calling the police requires owning a phone."

The boy didn't waste any time; he charged at the man and tackled him onto the ground, flicking his attention up at Lissa. For some reason, his plan of attack seemed eerily familiar to her," What are you waiting for?" The boy yelled," Run!"

"What about you-"

"RUN!"

Guilt washed over her, but there wasn't much she could do. As much as she hated to admit it, she couldn't defend herself. The only thing she could do was mend wounds and find someone else to fight her battles. Her breath caught as soon as the idea hit her," I'll go find somebody to help!" With one last glance at the struggling pair, Lissa broke out into a run.

She sprinted down the street, desperately searching in all the windows for either a cop or her friends, but the town seemed eerily empty. To make matters worse, she tripped and twisted her ankle. Cursing loudly, she wiped her bangs back and slipped the shoe off her foot and rubbed it gently," Oh, rat traps! How am I supposed to-"

"Seems like you had a bad spill," A chipper voice commented," Do you know what CAWsed it? Nya ha ha!"

Lissa peeked up at the the voice curiously; he had snow white hair and pale skin, but wore mostly dark colors. There were several odd looking pouches hanging from his belt and even more tucked in his shaded purple scarf. He wore two different rings, one with a huge purple gem and the other that looked like it was made out of bones," I tripped over my own feet, I guess," She mumbled sheepishly.

The boy's seemingly permanent smile laughed at that," You're funny! Here, let me help you up," Unlike Chrom, the teenager wrapped both of his hands around the girl and sprung her up onto her feet. He scanned her body, checking for any scrapes of bruises," Aww, there's no blood!"

Lissa, suddenly uncomfortable with the boy's invasion of her personal space, pressed her hands on his chest and pushed him away," Why would you want to see blood? Are you a vampire or something?"

"Nya ha, I wish!"

"So...you just like pain?"

The boy shook his head," I only like the blood; You see, we all have a dream worth dying for. Or even better, a death worth dreaming about!" He giggled," That's only if it is completely painless. I don't like ouchies."

Lissa blinked. Then she blinked again. The guy was the weirdest person she had ever met," Uh..."

He turned his attention back to her ankle," Do you need help getting anywhere? You shouldn't walk on that."

"I know, I-" She froze once her mission became clear again," Actually, I do need your help! This guy is attacking this other guy that I don't know, but the second guy that is getting attacked is currently getting attacked by the first guy who tried to kidnap me! We need to go back to help the second guy because I promised him that I'd get help!"

The white haired boy tilted his head, processing everything that she had babbled on about," Hmm...okay! Hop on my back, and we'll get going!" He didn't wait for her to comply and grabbed her thighs from behind him, heaving her up," I'm Henry, by the way!"

"Lissa," She squeaked, still dazed by the fact that a complete stranger was in her bubble. No boy had ever come this close to her except Chrom, so why did a random kid have no problem with it? She shook the thoughts away; there were more important matters at hand. Lissa pointed in the direction that she had been running from," That way!"

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Chrom and Robin stared at the vacant spot that once held their friends," Where did they go?"

The teenage girl bit her lip; there was a slim chance that they went out and got food themselves, but it had been two hours (Chrom was surprisingly specific with what he wanted and where he wanted to eat, and right afterwards he saw a music store and insisted on having a twenty minute conversation with the owner about what type of clarinet reeds were the best). She scanned the area, but got no hints to where they might've gone," I hope they're okay-"

"H-Help," The duo spun around, only to see a blue haired boy wearing sunglasses clutching his stomach," I t-tried my b-best to help," He winced and gripped his stomach even tighter than before," G-go find your f-fri-"

Before the boy could collapse, Chrom caught him," Hey, don't push yourself. Robin, call Lissa and make sure that she's alright. I need to take this boy to a hosp-"

"There's no need to call anybody," A greasy voice sneered from behind," I'm the boy's brother. I'll make sure that he gets home safe-"

"You are not my brother!" The wounded boy spat venomously," My real brother is...he's long gone."

Chrom helped seat the cobalt haired boy on the ground, his glare never leaving the enemy. Once he was comfortable, the teenager clenched his jaw at the man. Robin closed her fists and narrowed her eyes, an odd sense of protectiveness washing over her. She couldn't exactly pinpoint where she had seen him, but there was a slightly fuzzy picture of him in a dark alley similar to the one from her dream.

The man eyed the two cautiously, as if he knew they were prepared tofight. Robin watched as his eyes flickered over to her, carefullyobserving her thin figure. It was too obvious that he was planning onattacking her because he thought she was the weakest link. Her thoughts were confirmed when the man leered at Chrom," I know what you're planning. Unfortunately for you, I have the upper hand!" In one swift motion, he lunged for Robin. Predicting his move, she sidestepped him and held out her foot to trip him, watching in amusement as he plummeted on the cement.

"You're going to have to try harder than that if you want to catch me off guard," She said condescendingly, a victorious smirk present on her face. While on the outside, she seemed smug, Robin's heart was pounding a mile a minute; how did she analyze him that quickly? Was she used to being in combat? Her stomach churned at the thought.

"Chrom!" The quartet turned around, only to Lissa riding on the back of a white haired stranger. She angrily pointed at the man," That's him! That's the one who tried to...well...you know."

The man quickly processed that he was heavily outnumbered at this point and bolted before they would beat him to a pulp. The boy carrying Lissa frowned," Oh boo, I wanted to fight!"

"If you want to beat him up so badly, why don't you go after him?" Lissa groaned. Although the boy seemed friendly enough, it was obvious that his behavior was far from ordinary and slightly annoying.

"Okie dokie!" He plopped the girl in her brother's arms and waved cheerfully," It was nice to meet you, Lissa! I'll see ya' around!" Henry grinned maniacally and tore after the man, laughing psychotically along the way.

Chrom scrunched his eyebrows up in confusion," That was...quite an entrance, Lissa."

"Henry's nice, but I think that there are a few loose bolts in his head," Her eyes immediately fell on the blue haired boy from earlier. In a matter of milliseconds, she pulled a first aid kit from her purse kneeled down next to the kid," Come on, pull up your shirt so that I can treat you."

"W-What?! I-I can't! I just can't!" Without warning, he pushed Lissa away and bolted down the street.

The blonde frowned," Oh no, what happened? I was just trying to help," She sighed drearily and brushed off her skirt," I never got to thank him...for before. He saved my life, which was very brave."

"Why exactly did you need a savior?" Chrom questioned seriously," Were you attacked?"

Lissa grimaced," Ah, I don't really want to talk about it."

Thankfully, Frederick's car pulled up, saving her from explaining herself. Once Chrom caught sight of who was in the front seat, he beamed," Emm's back!"

Robin felt herself being dragged back into the car and stuffed in the middle seat between the two Exalt siblings. A gorgeous young woman with matching hair and eyes to Lissa sat in the front, smiling graciously at her younger brother and sister," Chrom! Lissa! I'm sorry I worried you, but as you already know, my train was canceled. How have you been?"

"It's been a weird day involving Lissa and mysterious boys, but other than that, everything is coming together for band camp next week."

"That's right," Emmeryn mused," Frederick said that someone broke into his band room and burned all of his hard work."

Chrom replied with a half smile," Eh, we've gone through worse."

"And besides, we had plenty of help!" Lissa added.

"Ah, you speak of your new friend, correct?" Robin blushed underneath the woman's gaze," Frederick also mentioned your predicament."

Frederick's eyes barely left the road," Forgive me, Miss Exalt, but I must say this; She claims to have lost her memory, but it is only that: a claim. We cannot rule out the possibility that she is a Plegian spy."

The siblings bristled," Frederick! If she wanted to sabotage us, she would've done it by now!" Lissa defended.

Emmeryn smiled at her younger sister and turned to Chrom," Do you trust her as well?"

"She stayed up most of the night helping me recreate drill and listened to me drone on about which reeds are the best-"

"You gave her the reed test?" Lissa's features brightened immensely," Did she pass it?"

Robin blinked," Hold on a minute, are you saying that this was all a test? I thought that you were genuinely interested in that kind of stuff."

The blue haired boy rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly," I don't actually care much about woodwind instruments. When I'm not conducting, I play my trumpet, Falchion."

"You named your trumpet Falchion?" She questioned dryly.

"No, my descendants named my trumpet Falchion," He informed," The instrument has been in the exalt family for years. It is said that in the 20s, my relative caught the top gangster, Grima. You see, he was actually stalling Grima by playing his music for hours on end so that the police could finally catch him and stop his reign on Ylisse."

"Grima?" She mumbled. Why did that name sound familiar? Her eyes suddenly fell onto her hand, where her purple tattoo sat. She didn't know how, but for some reason the two things were connected," That's an interesting story," Robin added quickly, trying to hide the fact that she had zoned out.

Lissa crossed her arms huffily," I've never been able to make a sound out of that hunk of metal."

"Neither have I," Emmeryn said, a playful tone evident in her voice," I was in color-guard."

"Maybe Robin can be in color-guard too!"

Chrom leaned back, and said girl could see pride gleaming in his eyes," Actually, I have something else in mind for her."

"Oh? What is it?"

"It's a surprise," He smirked," Hey Frederick, I need you to drop us off at the high school before we get back. I'm meeting up with this year's section leaders."

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Robin smoothed her sweatshirt nervously as a plethora of teenagers conversed around the band room. Chrom seemed to be the center of attention and was chatting with an olive haired boy, a redheaded girl, a girl with long, scarlet hair, and a muscular blonde. Lissa was prattling about Henry to a girl with curly buttery-colored hair dressed from head to toe in pink. A boy with long, turquoise hair was in the corner with a rosy haired girl making large gestures while his friend giggled. It seemed that everyone in the room had at least someone to talk to except her-

"Look out!" Robin had no time to react as someone rammed into her back, accidentally knocking both of them onto the ground," Ugh, it's always me who goofs up! I'm sorry!" The girl sat up and straightened her skirt. Robin took into account that this person had soft brown hair that cascaded into neat curls with a pearl headband placed in her hair. She wore a pale pink blouse over her purple skirt with matching sneakers. She also wore a pegasus pendant around her neck. Once she had straightened herself out, she held out her hand," Let's start over! Hi! My name is Sumia and I'm the Clarinet section leader!"

"Um, I'm Robin and I'm not exactly sure why I'm here," She replied after accepting the handshake," Something about a surprise."

Sumia tapped her chin thoughtfully," A surprise, huh?"

"Yeah, Chrom-"

Her eyes brightened immensely at the mention of his name," You know Chrom?"

Robin positioned herself so that she was sitting cross-legged," Mhm. Why? Are you two friends?"

"Ahh, not really...he probably thinks I'm a big clutz!" She sighed forlornly as she cast him another glance," He's really cute."

The white haired girl tilted her head to give the boy another glance. Sure, he was attractive and all, but she couldn't get over the fact that he was either accidentally insulting her or stumbling over his own words," I guess, but I'm not interested in dating him. He's all yours."

Sumia tugged on a jumbled stack of bracelets clasped around her right wrist," Unfortunately, that's not true either. My best friend Cordelia likes him too. She's the one with the long red hair," She pointed out.

"Wait, are you telling me that more than one girl has a crush on that dork?"

"He has a fan-club."

It took all of her willpower not to laugh," Oh, wow...that's...um...wow."

"Attention everyone!" Chrom called," Please take a seat. We're going to get started in a few minutes."

Sumia hopped onto her feet, pulling Robin up with her," Come on, we don't want to hold the meeting up!" She coaxed her to sit in the chair inbetween her and Lissa's friend," Hey, you never told me what instrument you play!"

Her heart dropped in her stomach," Uh, I actually-"

"Robin, come up here," Chrom nodded briefly at her new friend before taking her hand and guiding her to the front of the room. Once everyone was settled, he started back up," Okay, as some of you have noticed, I brought a guest. Everyone, this is my new friend Robin. Robin, these are the section leaders. You've already met Sumia, right?" She nodded," Good. So, the blonde haired girl next to Lissa is Maribelle, and she plays the piccolo. Behind them is Cherche; she plays the French horn. Her blue haired friend is Virion, the Saxophone section leader. The two redheads are Sully and Cordelia, who are the trumpet and cornet section leaders this year."

"It's only because you're the drum major this season," Cordelia responded," You're the best trumpet player I've met!"

Sully snorted," Gee, thanks."

Chrom pressed onwards," The olive haired boy is Stahl, who plays the trombone, and Vaike is on baritone. We're missing Nowi and Olivia, but for the most part, I think I've introduced you to everyone-"

"You're forgetting about me again."

Robin nearly jumped out of her skin when she noticed a brown haired boy. Chrom had a similar reaction to her, except he managed to tip a stand over in his shock," Gods, when did you get here?"

"...I've always been here."

The blue haired boy didn't seem to believe him," Really? You're positive? Huh. Well, this is Kellam. He plays the Tuba.

One of the redheads, Sully, spoke up," Why are you introducing us to your new girlfriend, captain?"

"We're not dating," Robin assured, trying to hide the fact that she was both appalled and amused that they assumed that," We just met yesterday. Anyways, he doesn't think I'm a lady," She added playfully.

Stahl blinked curiously," Why isn't she a lady? She sure looks like one."

"Chrom!" Lissa gasped," I thought you apologized to her!"

"I didn't think it was that big of a deal-"

The piccoloist, Maribelle, flipped her hair," Of course it's a big deal; you've hurt her sense of womanhood."

Sumia looked conflicted," I'm sure that-you shouldn't of-oh dear."

"Chrom can choose which ladies he thinks fit the description and which ones don't," Cordelia defended.

Vaike leaned back in his chair smugly," Prince-y here doesn't thing you're a lady because he's never dated one."

Chrom's eyebrow twitched," What are you talking about? You're being a hypocrite!"

"Teach has gone out with several chicks, and I've never seen you go out with one!"

"He had a crush on that one girl in middle school," Lissa said," What was her name? Penelope? Pansy? Petunia?"

Much to Robin's surprise, someone grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles," I have always known that you were a lady," The saxophonist,  
Virion, purred," You are as beautiful as a pure white rose in the morning-"

Cherche grabbed her friend roughly by the shoulder and yanked him off," Stop flirting, or you'll scare her off!"

"QUIET!" Chrom boomed. Everyone automatically stopped talking and returned to their seats, unwilling to endure their drum major's wrath," Gods, you people don't have to argue! I'm glad that you feel the need to defend your new drum major but-"

"New drum what?" Robin cried.

The boy smirked," You've got a pretty good grasp on the concepts needed to lead a band, and I figured that with your memories being lost-"

"She lost her memories?" Sumia squeaked. Her face automatically changed into a guilty expression," I didn't know-"

"It's fine," She lied. Honestly, she would rather deal with the odd fuzzy feeling that would etch it's way into her brain than have people feel bad for her. With that out of the way, she turned back to Chrom," Why me? Surely there are people with more experience that are better suited for the job."

He gave her a dead-panned look," Robin, you finished the entire new drill in one night, you were able to pick apart the different harmonies in each song, and you are not fazed by a challenge. Please join the band and become my co-drum major."

The white haired girl tried to hide the blush creeping its way onto her cheeks as he flattered her," Are you asking me this in front of everyone so that I can't say no?"

"That is exactly what I'm doing."

No matter how much she was trying to hide it, she longed to be a part of the band. They seemed extremely close, and it would be nice to have friends. If she was lucky, maybe they could help her retrieve her memories. Robin rubbed her arm and smiled nervously," Okay."

Chrom's eyes nearly popped out of his head," What? Really? I thought I'd have to blackmail you or-never mind, that's not important anymore-I mean, what I was going to say-it's not violent or anything, don't worry-I mean," He took a deep breath and started over," Welcome to the Ylissian Shepards!"

The cheerful moment was automatically ruined by Stahl," Wait, why did she have to come up with a new drill?"

The blue haired boy's smile faltered," Plegia invaded our territory and burned all of our music and drill in order to have an easy victory at regionals."

"Shouldn't we tell the police?" Cherche asked," They intruded our school grounds and destroy school property. If we bring this to the cops and play our cards right, Plegia could be disqualified."

Chrom rubbed his chin thoughtfully before nodding in agreement," That could work. I'll head there after lunch to try and convince them, and anyone who wants to come along is welcome to. Now, this mission is strictly voluntary. So if, for any-"

"I volunteer," Robin blurted. As soon as the words left her mouth, her face flushed a pale shade of pink," I mean, I am a drum major now and you have done so much to help me. It's my turn to return the favor."

"I'll come!" Lissa announced," Now that I'm a section leader, I want to do all I can to help the band."

"Me too! You'll be needin' ol' Teach along for such a delicate mission!"

Robin giggled as her friend cringed," This isn't a competition, Vaike. If you do anything to mess this up-"

"You'll be the one to mess it up, not Teach!"

"I'll go as well," Once again, everyone jumped when they heard Kellam speak up," What? I've been here the whole time!"

Sumia gripped her skirt," I...Uh...I don't think I should go. I'd probably goof up."

Chrom furrowed his eyebrow," Are you sure?"

"Y-yeah."

Cordelia looked desperately between her crush and her best friend before sighing in defeat," I'll stay with Sumia."

"I'd love to come, but I have to give Minerva a bath," Cherche said," Virion promised that he'd help me, so he can't come either."

"I want to come!" Stahl offered," I know I'm pretty average when it comes to this kind of stuff, but I'll try my best to help."

Sully pounded her fist into the air," I'll tag along too, Captain."

Maribelle turned up her nose," I'm going shopping, and none of you can change my mind."

"Aww, come on Maribelle!" Her friend coaxed.

"I see no value in my coming along on this mission, so it would be best if I use my time wisely."

Chrom tried not to roll his eyes at his sister's companion and took a head count," Okay, so it's going to be Robin, Lissa, Vaike, Stahl, Sully, and I-"

"And me."

"Kellam? Sorry, I forgot about you."

"Of course you did, captain."

The drum major didn't seem to hear his last comment, because he carried on," We'll meet back here in an hour. We don't have time to wait for you, so don't be late. Got it?" Everyone nodded," Good."

* * *

**So, I've got the original Shepards as section leaders and Henry as...well, that's a surprise. There was also the mysterious blue haired boy (We all know who that is) and Emmeryn! Sumia will not end up with Chrom in this story, but don't worry, I've got another guy for her. Time to respond to my wonderful reviewers!**

**passwordrawr:** **Aww, thank you! I love Band AUs as well, and Fire Emblem awakening fits perfectly into the category!**

**myra-is-a-tactician:** **I'm glad you like it! I usually like AUs myself, but some of them are repetitive****, so I can see where you're coming from.**

**Bubbleztehpwn:**** I'm excited for you to read more! **

**Demon of the sunrise:**** Fellow band member! Yay! Thank you for the compliment! ****I'm planning on continuing this one, and I've got a lot of my plot figured out! **

**Zarelyn:** **I'm horrible, because I double-guessed myself with how to spell Wary and ended up going with the wrong version...hehehe...I loved that part as well! They're so adorable together! **

**Gunlord500:** **I know, I'm surprised at the amount of Fire Emblem Band AUs there are! I just came from the anime realm of Fairy Tail, where there was only one (really really good) band AU, so I'm surprised! Thank you, though!  
**

**The next chapter will be focused on a certain police station in North Ylisse (hint hint) and a tournament! Catch the next chapter! Thank you for reading and continue to review!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	3. Chapter 3 Warrior's Realm and Twin Mark

**Chapter 3; The Warrior's Realm and Twin Mark**

* * *

"Brrr! F-F-Frederick! I'm f-f-freezing!" Lissa shivered," Why is it this c-c-cold in August?"

The band teacher, who had decided to tag along in order to provide support and guidance, shuffled the girl closer to him," Stay close by a group so that you have a barrier for the wind. It should help keep you warmer."

Robin glanced down at her sweatshirt and worn purple skirt, thankful that she had woken up with semi-warm clothing on. Chrom, who had opted to wear a dark blue T-shirt and jeans, strolled next to her. Behind them, Sully and Vaike were in a heated argument about who knows what with Stahl timidly following.

Chrom hummed thoughtfully, drawing her away from her observations," So, I've heard many things about the Regna-Ferox police force."

"What kind of things?"

"The Chiefs that rule Ferox have grown quite wary," Frederick's eyebrow twitched when he heard the Exalts giggle," Still, don't mistake a lack of hospitality for open hostility. This simply calls for a bit of negotiation."

The blue haired boy cringed," Negotiation's not my strong suit, but I'll do my best. Remember, everyone: your actions here reflect back upon Ylisse High's marching band. One wrong move and we'll be the ones disqualified."

Robin and Lissa shared an uneasy look at the thought, but shook it off. If they went into this matter hesitantly, they wouldn't accomplish anything. It didn't take much longer to reach the station, but as soon as they stepped onto the property, a woman with short blonde hair stomped out," What are you doing here?!"

"That escalated quickly," Robin murmured, earning an amused giggle from Lissa.

Frederick sent the two of them a warning glare before answering the woman," We're not here to disturb you, we only wish to discuss-"

"Well, look who it is," The woman interrupted," Chrom Exalt."

The blue haired boy narrowed his eyes," Raimi Izotz."

Robin blinked in confusion," Hold on, they know each other?"

The blonde next to her nodded nervously," She's the treasurer for Ylisse High. She ran to be student body president, but we can all guess who got the title."

"Chrom?"

"Yup."

"Really?"

Lissa nodded again," Yeah, he got a whole landslide of votes."

"..._really_?" It was almost laughable how surprising that was for her. Did he act differently around other people? Whenever he hung out with Robin, he would babble or tease her like he did with his sister. How on earth did this boy have such a fanbase?

Raimi crossed her arms smugly," It looks like you're in a tough place right now. After all you've done, you are going to ask me for help?"

"I didn't do anything but win," He replied hotly.

"I've heard enough," She snapped," Unfortunately for you, no one gets to Chief Flavia without going through me. So I suggest you leave the premises before I brand you as an intruder and obtain the right to use force."

Frederick bristled," Miss Izotz, this has nothing to do with your grudge against Chrom. Our music has been burned and-"

Raimi quickly pulled out her taser and aimed at the student president," I'm going to give all of you five seconds to get off my property. One..."

"What?" Lissa gasped," But we-"

"Two..."

Frederick tried to intervene again," Stand down, Miss Izotz! There is no need for violence!"

"Three..."

Robin was quite used to the feeling that she was forgetting something, so she knew that there was something very important that she was missing. It was at the tip of her tongue, but she was distracted by Sully," Who the hell do you think you are, woman?"

"Four..."

Suddenly, it hit her," Chrom! Get out of the way!"

"Five!"

"Jump!"

In one swift motion, Chrom hopped up, only to land on the handlebars of a passing bike. The wires of the taser sprung out, only to fall to the ground in defeat. The boy, curious to see who his savior was, turned around to look at the one steering the bike. His eyes widened in surprise when he realized who it was," Sumia?"

How could the girl who could barely walk a few feet without tripping be so graceful on a bike? Not only was she an obvious professional at controlling the vehicle, she was practically radiating confidence," Better hold on tight, Captain. Could get bumpy."

He watched her with awe and newfound respect," Uh..right."

Sumia giggled at his dumbstruck expression; Was this what Robin was talking about when she said Chrom was secretly a huge dork? It was kind of endearing," You'll be fine."

She slowed her bike to a stop beck in front of the others, where Lissa immediately tackled her brother into a warm hug, quickly followed by Frederick stepping in to see if he had been injured in any way. That only left Robin to make negotiations," Erm, Raimi? I'm sorry that you didn't win the election, but the matter at hand has nothing to do with that. You see, a boy from Plegia Academy-"

"Aren't you from Plegia Academy?" She said dryly, suspiciously eyeing the girl's sweatshirt. The white haired girl frowned and looked down  
at the article of clothing; to be honest, she had always found comfort in wearing it, seeing that it was the one unique factor she had from her past. Not only that, but it held a warm, fuzzy feeling with it. Why on earth would it be from Plegia if she regarded it so highly? Thankfully, the others weren't paying attention to her conversation so they wouldn't notice Raimi's accusation.

"I don't actually know. I have amnesia," Robin reassured, desperately hoping that the policewoman in training wouldn't question her further," But anyways, we feel that we should at least inform the police of our situation before the matter gets too out of hand."

"What if I choose-"

"Let them in, Raimi," A woman with dark skin and blonde hair commanded. She caught Robin's attention and winked," You're the marching band, right? I hear that you're in a competition against Plegia Academy."

She nodded," Yeah, we are."

By this point, the band had stopped fussing over Chrom and wandered back over to join in the conversation, with Frederick and Lissa close behind," You see, a Plegian student broke into our band room and burned our music to hinder our performance," Frederick explained," We were wondering if we could speak to the police Chief to see if there was anything they could do to help fix the problem."

"I can picture him now," Robin murmured to Sumia," A giant of a man of unparalleled strength, his broad chest covered in hair...hehehe-"

"Am I now?" The woman chuckled," Please, go on."

The white haired girl paled to the point where someone could have mistaken her for a ghost," Oh my goodness, I'm sorry! I didn't mean-"

"No worries," She replied," It was more amusing than insulting. Anyways, I can tell you've met my second in command, but I doubt you've met me; I am Chief Flavia of the Regna-Ferox Police Unit. Am I in the presence of the Ylissian band?"

"My name is Chrom, and this is my co-drum major, Robin," He introduced, pulling the flustered girl up with him," May I ask why we were treated with such hostility when we arrived?"

Robin bit back a laugh, trying to process that fact that the blue haired boy knew how to use big words. Flavia tilted her head, motioning for them to follow her inside," You see, there have been some Plegian students posing as Ylissians to try and give you guys a bad reputation with the police. Unfortunately for them, we have two units that attend Ylisse High, and they're able to pick intruders apart from concerned citizens."

"I assume one of them is Raimi?"

Flavia smiled fondly," She's a very determined girl who doesn't like to lose. Once she accepts her defeat, I'm sure she'll warm up to you."

Robin peeked behind her, surprised to see that the only Shepard that had followed was Lissa. Everyone else had opted to stay outside and keep out of trouble, and Frederick seemed to be keeping an eye on them. Raimi was watching them like a hawk," Who's your other unit?" Robin asked.

"He's technically not my unit, he's Head Chief Bassilo's."

"Head Chief?" Chrom repeated.

Flavia shrugged," Unfortunately, I cannot provide you the aid you need."

Lissa frowned," What? Why not? Aren't you the police chief?"

"I lack authority. In this branch, the chiefs of east sector and west sector hold a tournament every year. The victor acquires total sovereignty over both sectors. And that means they have the final say when it comes to arresting and investigating. The West-Chief won the last tournament, you see, and so..."

"So we are to receive no aid at all?" Chrom asked, trying to hide the disappointment in his voice.

The blonde woman smirked and ruffled his hair," Not if you always give up so easily! Luckily for you, the next tournament is tomorrow, and I am in need of champions."

"What does that have to do with us?"

The quartet finally reached her office; Flavia sat down at her desk while Chrom and Lissa took the chairs sitting opposite of it. Robin had opted to stand in the back, but ended up pacing as the wheels in her head turned. What kind of tournament were they talking about? If it was a violent type, it wasn't worth the risk. Then again, why would the police encourage fighting? Wasn't that what they were against?

Flavia continued," Perhaps you would consider representing the East in the upcoming tournament? If you win and I become head-chief, I will help you."

Chrom rubbed his chin thoughtfully," What kind of tournament are we talking about?"

"Paintball, of course!" She replied ecstatically," We each pick five members and one team captain and send them to fight against each other! The first team to defeat the other's units wins! I assure you, no one has been severely hurt in the past, so there is nothing to fear," She clasped her hands together in excitement," So? What do you say?"

He glanced back at Robin, who nodded," We'll do it."

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Chrom had been elected team captain for the East team, so he gathered up his band members outside and picked his teammates," Alright, so I think that we should pick the more athletic people to complete this challenge. Sorry, Lissa."

"Don't be sorry," His sister assured," I don't want to be shot and I'm not into running for my life. I'll stay at the sidelines."

"Good. That leaves Sully, Stahl, Sumia, Vaike, Robin, and I-"

"And me," Chrom let out an uncharacteristic help when Kellam stepped out," BWAAAH! Oh! I-is that you, Kellam? When did you arrive?

He furrowed his eyebrows,"...The same time as you. I've been with you all along. Er, I AM still a Shepherd, right? It's quite the honor, after all. I'd hate to lose it."

Robin patted the boy on the back," Of course, Kellam. Forgive us. You're just so...quiet."

"It's fine. I've been told I'm easy to miss."

Robin crossed her arms thoughtfully," That might be a good trait to have in this case. If the West's units don't see you, you can easily pick them off."

"I didn't even think of that," Chrom said proudly," What else do you suggest?"

Was he really putting the responsibility of this battle on her? She didn't mind, but if she failed...Robin bit her lip. She would have to make their plan of attack full-proof if they wanted to win," Uh, let's see...I say that Sully should team up with Vaike for the time being, just incase he loses his paintball gun."

"Teach won't lose his-"

"Yes, he will," Sully grumbled.

Robin straightened up, her confidence growing by the second," Stahl, that means you should hang around Kellam, but be a sniper or something. They'll never notice you."

The olive haired boy shrugged," I'm better at close up action, but I guess I could give it a shot-"

"No," She waved off," If you're bad at long distance, than I'd be giving you a death sentence by going up there. No worries; I'll be the sniper. You should still hang around Kellam, just in case he gets ambushed or something."

"That I can do!"

Robin continued," Since we are split up into-"

"If you don't mind me saying so," Sumia cut in," I think that you and Chrom should pair up together so that neither of you are left alone."

"But then we don't have a sn-"

The brown haired girl crossed her arms cheerfully and winked. If Robin's hunch wasn't wrong, her new friend was planning something," Come on, Robin! Have your co-captain's back!"

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Robin couldn't believe she had been roped into this.

The two drum were currently crouched in a bush and covered in patting. When they had returned to Emmeryn's house the previous night, Chrom gave her an idea of what paintball would be like and let her cook up further strategies while Lissa dug all around her room, looking for a spare set of clothes her new friend could borrow. They woke up early the next morning to head to the forest terrain that they would be competing on.

Unfortunately, they were 20 minutes into the game and hadn't come across anyone, leaving them with nothing but polite, yet boring, conversation," Sumia made a point yesterday," Robin murmured," I can't play an instrument."

"We'll just have to teach you, then," Chrom replied happily. He, on the other hand, seemed to have no problem being around her and reassured every doubt that she brought up. On one hand, it was sort of sweet, but on the other, he was being fricking annoying. Where he got this optimism from, she didn't know.

Before she could defend her pitiful case, something blue caught the corner of her eye," Chrom!" She hissed," Look!"

"I see him," He answered. The two nodded at each other before hopping up and aiming their guns at him," Who are you?"

The blue haired boy from the day before clenched the handle of his gun in return,"...You may call me Marth."

Something about his name made Chrom's breath catch," Okay, then. One more question before we begin."

The boy in sunglasses held his gun up and prepared for battle, making it clear that he wasn't here to talk. Chrom narrowed his eyes in return," Robin."

She jumped in surprise," Yeah?"

"Fall back for a bit; this one's mine."

The white haired girl didn't know whether to nod or roll her eyes," I'll be fine right here. Besides, you're the one who wanted to partner up with me so badly."

Chrom sent her a brief glare before sighing," Fine. Just stay back. We can't risk losing you in the game-where did you get that?" Robin turned away from Chrom, only to see him fixated on an crudely drawn mark on her hand. She bit her lip when she realized that it was in the exact same spot as her tattoo, but a different symbol," There's no way..."

With one swipe, Robin was on the ground, narrowly avoid a paint-pellet aimed for her chest. Chrom didn't waste any time after knocking his companion out of the way; he jumped straight for the boy and shot at him. Unfortunately, Marth narrowly dodged it.

"Tell me," Chrom growled as he began to circle the boy," Who taught you how to fight like that?"

Robin's gaze flickered to Marth's hand. It look poised to flick the trigger at any moment. The petite boy's calm demeanor quickly faded into one of fury," My father!"

Without thinking, Robin swiped her foot towards Chrom's ankles, effectively knocking him off his feet and helping him avoid the bullet. Marth aimed the the pair and wouldn't knocked both of them out of the game had Sully not jumped out of the woods, shooting like a mad-woman. The boy with sunglasses cursed under his breath before fleeing the site. The red headed girl snorted," Coward. Hey Captain, Robin saved your ass back there."

"Marth is gifted, that's for sure. We both would've been knocked out if it weren't for you, Sully. Thanks!" Robin commended.

The trumpet player seemed pleased with the compliment," It was nothing. Anyways, his men are capable as well. We should mind our distance."

Chrom seemed to have regained his bearings by this point and got to his feet. He took a hold of Robin's hand as well, helping her stand up," Sully, where's Vaike?"

"He lost his paintball gun and got cornered. I would've stayed by him, but I would have been outnumbered and shot down."

"He's an idiot," Chrom grumbled grouchily," Okay, you should hang around Stahl and Kellam and give them any assistance you feel is necessary. Robin and I are going after Marth."

Sully blinked," Marth? As in your great-great-great grandfather Marth?"

"Yes."

"Damn," She let out a low whistle," I wonder what this kid's playing at."

"I don't know," The Exalt replied," But he helped save Lissa yesterday, so this is all coming as a surprise to me. I don't want to make an enemy of him, but in order to gain the help we need, we have to strike him down. Come on," It was only then that she realized he had not let go of her hand, because he dragged her off in the direction of Marth," Okay, we need a plan."

"Easy; I'll distract him while you shoot him down," She regained her bearings quickly and was able to keep up with her energized friend," Chrom, what did you mean when you said that guy named himself after your descendent?"

"Not just any descendent," He grumbled," The one who defeated Grima."

Robin decided that since the subject was brought up, she should press it," So, about this Grima person-"

She slammed right into Chrom, who had abruptly stopped," Marth!" The blue haired boy was perched on a stable tree branch, staring down at him," Who is your father?"

"I've said enough for one day," He replied seriously.

Chrom bristled," Hmph. Is that how it is? Lissa owes you her life, and for that you have my gratitude. But in this game, I represent the East-Sector and the interests of the Ylissian Band. I can't promise to allow you to win, but I vow not to embarrass you."

Marth snorted," Heh, never expected such youthful arrogance..."

"Youthful arrogance?" Robin repeated dryly," How old does he think we are?"

Her comment did not go ignored, because her enemy narrowed his eyes at her,"...We shall see who shames who."

"Robin, get down!" The duo jumped on the ground, barely avoiding Marth's paintballs. The white haired girl nodded at Chrom, signaling the start of their plan. In one quick movement, she rolled away towards a bush and sprung to her feet.

Marth glared at her attempt to flee the premisses. With one shot, his bullet flew through one of her ponytails and slammed into a tree," I assumed you would fight with honor," She cringed, preparing for the worst," May the best soldier win."

He pulled the trigger, sending a paintball straight into her chest, immediately followed by another pellet to her thigh. The quick, sharp pain was instant, almost as if someone was whacking her with a ruler. Robin was incredibly grateful that she was provided with padding, because it would've hurt a lot more if not. Unfortunately, she had not thought to cover her thigh; the exposed skin stung sharply, sending tiny bee-sting like prickles down her skin. She yelped in shock, biting back the tears of surprise trying to claw their way out. To distract herself from the pain, Robin turned her focus back on her attacker. For some reason, his features seemed concerned.

Marth suddenly jerked forward in surprise; he gently touched his back and brought it back, grimacing when he saw it was covered in neon paint," Impressive...if not surprising..."

The sound of a siren filled the air, deeming the East-Sector Victorious. Marth spared the duo one last glance before disappearing into the terrain. Once he was gone, Chrom started fussing over the girl," It didn't hurt, did it? I can't believe that he shot you twice! What kind of dastard-"

Robin giggled," Don't worry; the pain is long gone," She lied, knowing all-to-well that there was still a huge, red welt on her thigh.

Chrom narrowed his eyes at her, but Flavia stepped in before he could say anything," Well fought! You have my respect. And, perhaps more to the point, you have your alliance. I will provide the Ylissian Band with the service it needs."

His eyes brightened immensely," Truly? Thank you, Chi-I mean, Head Chief Flavia."

The woman chuckled," I like the sound of that! Now, it's time for a celebration!" She gave the two a fleeting wave before exiting the field.

"Bah! Any excuse for a party and Flavia jumps on it..."

The two flipped around, only to be faced with a large, dark skinned man. Chrom blinked," Uh, have we met?"

"I'm Basilio, the chief you so rudely removed from power," He grouched. His anger quickly diminished, though, when he began praising their skill," You're band kids, right? How did you beat my captain?"

The blue haired boy turned solemn," I couldn't have done any of it without Robin, but there is a more important matter at hand. What do you know about this Marth character?"

"Bah! He's just some kid with delusions of grandeur. All I know is that he turned up one night and knocked my old captain flat. It was love at first sight, and I'm generally too old for such things! Baha! Anyway, he's gone now. Up and fled the moment the tournament ended."

By this point, the three had wandered back to the others, and were shortly joined by Lissa and Frederick. The blonde perked up," Wait, are you talking about my hero?"

Robin rolled her eyes," You mean Marth? Yeah. He ditched us to run off to who knows where."

The girl sighed blissfully," He's so dark and mysterious."

"Sounds like he's got at least one fan," Her friend remarked playfully.

She nudged her," Well, I mean, c'mon... He IS sort of dreamy, isn't he?"

Chrom was quick to defend his sister's innocence," And YOU'RE sort of dreaming!"

"Yowch! Lighten up, Big Brother. I was just kidding."

Frederick chuckled," As amusing as this is, I believe that we should head home. My wife is-"

"You have a wife?" Robin choked. How was it that she spent the night at his house and never noticed that he had a partner? Was she really that oblivious?

"Of course. We've known each other since High School. Sure, she may come off a bit frightening at times, but she means well," This time,  
he was the one sighing like a schoolgirl," She was an exchange student from Plegia, and we butted heads a lot. We were the two bass clarinets, and I was always on her back about practicing her instrument. I thought that she despised me until I got in a fight and came out with a black eye. She wouldn't let me out of her sight until she took me to the nurse's office."

She grinned," That's so sweet."

He smiled in return," You'd be one of the firsts to think that."

Chrom and Lissa were gagging in the background," Ugh, if we're going to talk about your love life, then I _want_ to go home."

"Wait."

The quartet directed their attention towards a tall, brown haired boy that looked to be around Chrom's age," I hear that Plegian's are playing dirty to try and win. If they are going to such lengths as to burn school property, I feel that I should be on the premises to help defend the students," He shuffled almost bashfully," I play the drums, so I feel that I could be an asset to your band program."

Chrom beamed," Really? That's great! Welcome aboard..."

"Lon'Qu."

"Lon'Qu?" Lissa repeated. She took a few steps forward to try and observe him," That's a weird-"

"Stay back, woman!"

She flinched," Hey! Wh-what did I say?!"

"I don't like women."

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Robin couldn't help but notice Sumia seemed a bit down on the way back," Hey, is something wrong?"

"Oh, it's nothing," She lied softly," You shouldn't worry about it."

The white haired girl rolled her eyes. Although she wasn't sure she wanted to admit it yet, Sumia had gained her trust pretty early on," Come on, I don't bite."

"...Oh, alright! You see, my parents live in Southtown, but they're allowing me to stay in Ylisse because of the growing band program and my friends. They're just nervous about me living alone in an apartment, and they're trying to pressure me into finding a roommate," She rubbed her arm nervously," The problem is, I don't want to live with some stranger-Wait, where are _you_ staying?"

Robin deflated," Uh, I don't have a place-"

"Perfect!" She squealed, causing half the band to jump out of their skins," You can be my roommate"

"I-I couldn't-"

"Come on, it'll be fun!"

"But..." Robin watched as her new friend's eyes sparkled with hope and excitement. Did she really want an amnesiac to move in with her? They had just met. She glanced back down at her tattoo hesitantly; what if she was dangerous? All the signs pointed to the possibility of it being true. I mean, how else could she know how to fight and make strategies? Even worse, why did she get a thrill from it? She opened her mouth to deny the sweet girl's offer," What if I'm not who you think I am?"

Sumia blinked in confusion," What do you mean?"

She started trying to pick some of the paint out of her hair," I don't know. What if I'm actually a bad person? I can't remember anything, remember? What if-"

The brunette grabbed her new friend's shoulders, unwillingly making her flinch," Do you want to be a bad person?"

"Of course not-"

"Then who says you have to?" Sumia smiled kindly," This is your chance to start new, even if you were a bad person. You can be good now if you want. Nothing is holding you back except yourself."

Robin's eyes became glossy at her new companion's sincerity," Really?"

"Really really," She giggled," So, what do you say? Wanna be my roommate?"

She was too touched to muster up the right words, so Robin merely nodded. Perhaps Sumia was right; She didn't need to worry about who she might've been. She only had to worry about who she was going to be. And Robin had no doubt that her life was going to take a change for the better.

* * *

**Hey guys! Sorry I haven't posted in a long time, I had bowling regionals (We're going to state on friday!). Can you guys guess who Frederick's wife is? Hehehe...It's an odd pairing, but they DOMINATE together. Anyways, I recently started over Fire Emblem because I beat it, but this time I was going to do it on the Hard difficulty...hehe, Normal mode did not prepare me in any way to do that. Thankfully, I'm getting the hang of it quickly! People just die a lot more than I'm used to. Ah well. On the weird side of things, I'm only on chapter five and the game is telling me that I can S rank with Chrom! I think that I'll wait a little bit because everyone else is barely on their C ranks. Review time!**

**Timpani Bleck: ****Yay fellow band people! I'm glad you approve of my section leaders for the flute/piccolos! (P.S. The only couple I cannot break apart in the game is Chrobin. I feel like I'm cheating on him if I marry someone else)**.

**Radio-Blaze:** **Aww, thanks! Band is awesome, so I'm glad you're trying this AU out! Hehe, if you think it's wacky now, just wait...hehehe. I love Henry too, but my older brother is obsessed with him. I have plans for him. :)**

**macpa:**** Thank you! I'm glad you like the story, and I look forward to updating more!**

**Bramblesong's Vulpix**** OH MY GOSH, YES! That is an awesome idea, and I am taking it and putting it in my story! Thanks for the reminder about mellaphones. The only reason I'm saying French Horn is because this story might meld into a little bit of concert band later. I'm not sure yet. I'm glad you're excited!**

**Thank you guys for the wonderful reviews, and I can't wait to see what you guys think! I love hearing your feedback! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	4. Chapter 4 A Long Day

**Chapter 5; Day 1**

**Hey guys! Sorry it's been so long since I've posted; I haven't had wifi since Thursday. There are some OCs in this story because they need a full sized(ish) band, but they're not going to take main character roles (probably). Okay, hope you guys enjoy! **

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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Sumia owned a cozy apartment a few blocks away from the school. Itheld a living room, an adorable kitchen, one bathroom, and onebedroom. Her new friend bashfully informed her that they'd be sharing a room, probably because she thought Robin would have a problem with it. The white haired girl simply smiled and assured her that she was looking forward to sharing it with her.

The rest of the evening was spent weaving through Sumia's closet for clothes and what-not, so that Robin could last at least a week without wearing the same outfit over and over again. Afterwards, the two girls ordered take-out and watched some of movies that she claimed were classics.

Robin didn't realize that she had dozed off until Sumia woke her up with a scream," Oh my goodness, we're going to be late!"

She watched as her roommate fluttered about the room in curiosity," Late for what?"

The brunette stuck her head out of her bedroom," Band Camp, of course! Here!" She tossed a pair of black shorts and a cream T-shirt at her," Get dressed, we need to leave ASAP!"

Robin nodded frantically and flew into the bathroom to change. She had only switched her clothes once over the past three days, so it was refreshing to be able to switch some things out. Her excitement  
immediately died down when a wave of pain rolled throughout her torso. Her eyes slowly skimmed her body, and when she found her upper arms and stomach covered with darkening purple bruises, she gasped. Her stomach churned anxiously as she traced some of them, wincing as she did so. No wonder she flinched every time someone touched her; She had been beaten before she lost her memories.

"Robin, are you done changing?"

"Almost!" She blurted, quickly swiping on the clothes. She pulled her sweatshirt on top to hide the marks and give her a sense of security. As soon as she was done, she tied her sneakers and ran out, trying to erase the image of her swollen body out of her head," Let's go!"

Sumia frowned and motioned towards her sweatshirt," You're going to get hot with that on."

"Don't worry, I'll be fine!" She grabbed her new friend's hand," We're gonna be late!"

This managed to distract her from further questioning," You're right! Here, can you carry our backpack so that I can steer the bike better?" Robin nodded and took the object from her, strapping it on her back. As soon as Sumia grabbed her bicycle, the two ran outside and mounted it. Robin hopped on the back and kept a firm grip on Sumia's shoulders," Hold on tight!"

That was the only warning she got, because a second later they took off at top speed. Robin squeaked and tightened her grip on her friend, watching in a mix of awe and terror as the world around them turned into a blur," We're going a bit fast, don't you think?!"

"We'll be late if we go any slower-CAR!" The bike took a sharp turn, narrowly avoiding a jeep headed their way. They pulled back on the sidewalk just in time, causing several people to jump out of the way," There! We made it! Are you okay, Robin?"

"We almost died!"

"Yes; _Almost_."

By the time they had finally reached the school, the girls had dodged at least three cars and almost ran over several pedestrians. While Sumia was very good at riding and steering her bike, the fact that she was going faster than most of the cars caused her skill to be a bit dulled. On the bright side of things, they ended up being arriving five minutes early.

Lissa, closely followed by Maribelle, giggled at the two's frazzled expressions and appearances," You two look ridiculous!"

Sumia giggled and locked her bike to the rack," We were running a bit late, so we rushed to get here. Right, Robin?"

"I never want to get on that thing again!" She replied shakily," We almost died!"

"Yes; _Almost_."

Maribelle made an appalled face," You ladies should straighten yourselves out before people start rumors."

Both girls turned a bright shade of red," Ah, yes. I think I'll do that right now."

The blonde chuckled at their flustered expressions," Actually, Chrom was looking for you Robin. You might want to stop by and see what he wants."

She nodded, trying to calm her frenzied hair," I'll be right there. See you guys in a bit!" It wasn't that hard to find her fellow drum-major. He was sitting on top of the podium in the band room, filing through some of the drill," Hey, Captain!"

He greeted her with a grin," You don't have to call me that. I'm not one for titles."

"Everyone else calls you-"

"I know, I know. It just feels weird if you do it, because we're equals here."

Robin shrugged and sat next to him," I see your point," Her eyes fell on the travel mug next to him," I thought you said you hated coffee."

His eyes widened in realization," Oh right, I almost forgot! Lissa accidentally made too much of this vile stuff, so we tried our best to recreate your special concoction," He held it out to her, a faint splash of pink kissing his cheeks," If it tastes bad, you don't have to drink it all. Actually, you don't have to drink it at all if you don't want to-"

He was tripping over his own words again. Robin giggled and took the cup from him, effectively shutting him up in the process. He watched in a mix of hope and utter agony as she brought the cup to her lips," Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Uh...well...The last time I made you mad, you hit me with a book."

She frowned," Are you saying that you want this to taste bad?"

"Of course not!"

"Then there's nothing to worry about," Robin assured. She tentatively took a sip of the coffee and immediately sputtered in surprise. He had given her the impression that it was going to taste horrible, but instead, she was greeted with something that tasted almost gourmet," Oh my gosh, this tastes awesome!"

Chrom jolted in astonishment," What? Really? You're not just being nice to make me feel better about myself, right?"

The white haired girl titled her head," What would either of us gain from that?" Something about what she said made him light up like a Christmas tree, and she couldn't help but smile herself," So, what did you need to talk to me about?"

"Oh yeah," He straightened his papers and set them down on the other side of him. He traded them for a singular sheet with several names on it," These are the band members. You've already met most of the section leaders, but you don't know Nowi and Olivia yet. Nowi is the Percussion's first chair, while Olivia is the captain of the colorguard team," She nodded, signaling for him to go on," Okay, so starting with the flute section, we have Lissa, Maribelle, and Markel. Markel normally plays the oboe, but-"

"Oboes aren't allowed to march because of the double reed."

"Right-Hey, how did you know that?"

Robin furrowed her eyebrows as a fuzzy feeling crawled it's way back into her head," Uhh, I'm not sure."

"Hmm...Oh well, we have time to figure it out later," He continued," As I was saying, Sumia is the head of the Clarinet section, but Ricken is second chair. He's a freshman this year, but he joined the band in 8th grade because of his high skill level. There's a few other clarinets, but you'll catch their names later. Virion is our alto saxophone, and this year, we've been stuck with Gaius as one as well. The only reason he joined was so that he could get out of doing community service, so keep an eye on that one."

Robin crossed her arms huffily," He's using band as a way to get out of work?"

"Yup."

"I'll be sure to watch him closely."

Chrom nudged her playfully," Oh, I know you will. Going on, we have Cherche as our French Horn, but she plays the mellophone during marching season. You've met the two red-headed trumpets already, but Hewitt is our third chair. He's...well, a bit dull and isn't one for  
emotions. It's pretty hard to hold a conversation with him, but all in all, he's a good guy. There are some other people in the section, but they don't talk much and tend to follow whatever orders you give them. Personally, I think they're scared of Frederick," Robin giggled," Going on, there are the trombones. Stahl is first chair this year, and Libra is his second in command. A word of caution: Libra is a boy, not a girl. I learned that the hard way. I've also heard that we have a foreign exchange student coming in named Gregor, which is cool since we don't have many people looking to join the band program. Bryony is the only girl in the section, and while she is a bit mopey, she is a phenomenal player. Stahl would have some competition for first chair if she wanted to challenge him, but she says that she's not much of a leader."

The white haired girl pointed to the section on the paper next to the trombones," Those are the tubas, right?"

"Nope, they're the Baritones. Much to my displeasure, Vaike is the first chair. Frederick thought that he deserved it and all that, but I think that he's going to lose his instrument after the first two days. There's a freshman named Donnel joining him, but I don't know much about him other than his name. To the right of them is the tuba section, lead by Kellam. Hadlee is also a freshman that is going to play tuba as well."

"He must pretty dedicated if he's willing to carry something twice his size around."

Chrom shrugged," Who knows? Maybe he's huge and the tuba's the thing that's small."

She laughed at the mental image," Okay, so what about the percussion?"

"Like I said, Nowi is the section leader and plays the tenor drums. Lon'Qu joined yesterday, and due to his experience on the drums, I'm going to put him on snare. We have Erick on the bass drum because he has a tendency to drop his sticks all the time and it's really annoying. Unfortunately, they're the only percussionists we have this year, because most of them either graduated or dropped out."

"Yikes. Do they play loud enough to carry the band?"

He cracked a grin," Nowi does."

"Good...I think."

Chrom motioned back towards the paper," Okay, so the only person not on here are Olivia, the color guard captain. Sadly, she's the only one on the team, so until further notice, she's on baton and rifle. If we manage to gain at least one more member, we can add some flag work into our drill."

Robin frowned," Poor Olivia."

He sighed," It's better than having a bunch of inexperienced people stumbling along to keep up with her," He glanced up at the clock," It's about time to call them in. The schedule is sectionals in the morning until 11:20, then we eat lunch for 45 minutes, and then we practice as a group until 5:00. Afterwards, some of us will usually get dinner together. Want to come?"

"Are you sure that your friends want me to be there?"

"Of course! They'll love you," Chrom assured. She blushed slightly, and was eternally thankful when he ignored it and continued on," During sectionals, we usually float around and check up on the other  
students or work on our own stuff. I figured that we could use today's time to give you a crash course on drum majoring."

Robin gave him a thumbs up," Sounds like a plan!"

"Good! I'm going to go call them in. You can stay here."

"Actually, can I-" She stopped and watched as he ran out the door. With a huff, she seated herself on a nearby stool," Never-mind."

"Never-mind what?"

Robin held back a surprised shriek, but couldn't stop herself from falling off the chair. Before she could hit the ground, a firm hand reached out and caught her hand pulled her back up. Once she steadied, she found herself face to face with a maroon haired boy," Sorry, I didn't mean to sneak up on you like that," He apologized," My name's Markel."

"I'm Robin. You're the oboe player, right?"

He held up the thin case in his other hand," I'm a flute until marching season's over, but yeah. You see, oboe's can't-"

"-march, I know."

Markel rose his eyebrow curiously," That's interesting; usually people that I talk to hear the word oboe and think I'm talking about homeless people. Are you an oboist?"

She bit her lip sheepishly," Hehe...about that; I have amnesia."

"But you think that you played the oboe before you lost your memories?"

That was new. Usually when she revealed her lost memories, people would give her a pitiful look. It was refreshing that this kid didn't react the same way," Yeah, I think so."

He smiled," Well, that's cool! I haven't had a fellow oboe before. I usually just count myself as a flute because we play in the same key and usually have the same rhythms. I'd be glad to stay after someday and introduce you to my instrument."

She sucked in an excited breath," Really? You'd do that?"

"Sure, I'd be happy to! We just gotta tell my younger sister beforehand," By this point, kids began to file inside," I've got to return to my section, but I'll talk to you later! It was nice to meet you..."

"Robin."

He nodded cheerfully," It was nice to meet you, Robin."

She gained a few friendly waves from those who recognized her, but overall gained curious stares. It was a relief when Chrom and Frederick finally re-entered. Her fellow drum-major settled himself next to her and granted her a reassuring smile. Frederick walked onto his podium and cleared his throat, effectively silencing everyone," Welcome students. My name is Mr. Warry, but you may call me Frederick. As you have probably guessed, I am your band teacher. Behind me are Chrom and Robin, your drum majors this year," Said duo waved," For those of you who have been in the program before, it is good to see you again. As always, I greet newcomers with open arms and high expectations. With that out of the way, I'd like to have our drum majors make their introductions and give you the schedule for today."

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Robin and Chrom spent the entire duration of sectionals pouring of drum major material. She absorbed all of the information like a sponge, eager to learn as much about the subject as possible. In the amount of time that they had been given, she had learned how to read music (Chrom said that he suspected she knew how to before she lost her memories), how to conduct, and skimmed over the concept of marching.

The white haired girl smiled in satisfaction as she reviewed her progress," I think I get it all. What should we learn next?"

"Next?" A new voice chuckled awkwardly. The red haired girl from yesterday (Cordelia, was it?) seemed almost anxious," But Mr. Warry said that it was time for lunch."

Chrom's eyes widened in surprise," Already? Wow, I guess the old phrase is right; Time flies when you're having fun!" He sent the girl a grin," Thanks for giving us a heads up, Cordelia! I wouldn't want to miss out on lunch!"

The cornet player nearly fainted on the spot," Of c-course, C-Chrom!"

"Come on, let's go," Much to her shock, he scooped Robin's hand in his and pulled her up. Honestly, she should've been used to it by now, but the fact that this boy was so comfortable around her made her feel warm and fuzzy. He lead her out of Frederick's office and made a quick stop to get his lunch-bag before guiding her outside.

As soon as she stepped foot on the grass, Sumia and Lissa pounced on Cordelia and her, separated them from Chrom, and lead her over to a group of girls. The only face that Robin recognized was Maribelle, who sat protectively by Lissa. Sumia took it upon herself to introduce everyone else," Okay, so you already know a few of us, but I don't think you've met...hmmm...oh, Olivia!"

A girl with cotton-candy-colored hair turned a bright shade of red," W-What?"

"This is Robin! She's my roommate!"

A girl with blackish-violet and dark clothes rose her eyebrow," So you finally suckered someone into moving in with you?"

Sumia pouted," I didn't do anything bad, Bryony. She volunteered...after some convincing. Here, I packed you a lunch," She handed Robin a lunch bag," I didn't know what you liked, so I put a few different options in. Here, sit down!"

Robin followed her suggestion and positioned herself between Sumia and Olivia. Cordelia seated herself on the other side of the brunette and sent Robin a sharp look. She rose her eyebrow in return, curious to why the redhead might be cross with her. Did she recognize that her sweatshirt was Plegian like Raimi had? Robin cringed at the thought.

"So," A clarinet player started," You seem pretty close with Chrom."

"Yeah," She replied aimlessly while twirling a blade of grass between her fingers," He's had my back ever since I woke up in this field without my memories."

The girl narrowed her eyes at her," Amnesia, huh? That seems pretty far-fetched."

Lissa didn't waste any time throwing a carrot at the girl," Hey, there's no reason to pick on her, Marie! I believe her."

"That's because your entire family is too forgiving," A pale haired teenager whispered. Her friend beside her giggled, causing Lissa to shrink slightly.

Maribelle, on the other hand, would not stand for it," If you have something you'd like to say, you might as well say it so that we can all hear."

The girls' eyes widened in fear," I...Uh..."

"We were just talking about how Robin throws herself onto Chrom," Her friend blubbered," She should respect his personal space!"

Robin couldn't help but feel relieved that the criticism was aimed back at her instead of Lissa. Still, it was entirely confusing why all of this anger was directed at her. Had she done something to set them  
off? Suddenly, it became blatantly obvious. She scanned the two teenagers before dryly saying," You're in his silly fan-club, aren't you?"

"It's not silly!" Cordelia blurted. As soon as she realized her mistake, she covered her mouth hastily and turned almost as red as her hair. Sumia patted her shoulder comfortingly and sent Robin an apologetic look.

Bryony hugged her knees and sighed," Why is it that we always end up talking about Chrom? Why can't we talk about...I dunno, clouds or something?"

The girl from earlier, Marie, snorted," Who in their right mind would-"

"That cloud looks like a bumblebee," Robin interrupted as she laid on her back. Bryony blinked in surprise, and looked even more astounded when her drum major patted the spot next to her," No wait, it's changing into a...Uh..."

The mopey girl laid down next to her and scrunched up her face," I think it's a turnip."

Lissa decided that this game was much more to her liking and dissed her brother's fan girls to join the other two," Nuh-Uh! It's totally a frog!"

"Frogs don't have wings, Lissa."

"Those aren't wings; they're flippers."

The pink haired girl from earlier spoke up," I think that the one over there looks like a ballet slipper-sorry, I hope that you don't mind me joining-"

"Of course not!" Robin assured," The more the merrier!"

Soon, many of the other girls began to join in; Sumia managed to coax Cordelia to play the game while Maribelle settled herself next to Lissa. Chrom's fangirls huffily exited, making false claims to try and upset Robin. Said girl just brushed their comments off and spent the rest of the lunch period staring up at the serene sky.

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It was hot.

The sun mercilessly beat down on Robin as she conducted on one of the smaller podiums, trying to follow Chrom's example the best she could. Unfortunately, her sweatshirt was attracting heat like a lamp would attract flies. Sweat rolled down her face and would occasionally trickle onto her hand. She could feel that her tank top underneath was soaked.

Soaked. Water.

Gods, she really needed some water. Why hadn't she thought to bring a bottle? Even the freshmen had. Without warning, her head started to pound. Robin groaned quietly and ignored the slight eyebrow raise from Markel. She had to push on, even if it meant working through a silly...silly...

What was she thinking about again? It had something to do with...something. Was it the fact that her heart was beating far too rapidly for her liking, or just that she was really thirsty? Why couldn't she remember? In fact, why couldn't she remember anything? Her breathing was becoming staggered, much to her chagrin, and her legs felt like jelly. The last coherent thought she had was that she needed water.

Then everything went black.

Markel, who had noticed his new drum major's odd behavior, threw his flute to the ground and dove forward to break the girl's fall. Lissa yelped in surprise and followed suit as quickly as she could, placing Robin's head in her lap. Chrom looked about ready to help as well, but Frederick sent him a sharp glare," You need to control the band while we figure this situation out."

"But-"

"Chrom," The teacher pleaded. The blue haired boy frowned, but eventually gave in and nodded. Frederick sent him a grateful smile before joining the flutists," What happened?"

Lissa began to play with the barely concious girl's hair," Nothing too serious; she just collapsed. I think that it was due to being dehydrated and overheated. With some rest and time to cool down, I think she'll be alright."

The brunette nodded and carefully scooped Robin in his arms," I'll take her home, then-"

"Wait! She lives-AH!" Sumia rushed forward, only to trip over her own feet. The clarinetist hopped back up as fast as she could and finished her sentence," She lives with me. I'll show you the way."

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Robin groggily opened her eyes, trying to remember why she was passed out on Sumia's couch. The first object her eyes fell on was a glass of water, which she greedily drank until there wasn't a drop left. Her head seemed cool and slightly moist, as if it were drenched in sweat...

Oh no.

The white haired girl moaned and collapsed back onto her pillow, squeezing her eyes shut in an attempt to try to forget the embarrassment of the day's previous events. What would they think of her now? Would Chrom and Frederick change their minds and demote her from her position? Robin could already see the accomplished looks on the fangirls' faces.

Gods, she felt disgusting. Maybe taking a shower would cool her down and give her a chance to clear her mind. The white haired girl allowed herself a small grin at the idea and decided to take advantage of her alone time, even if that meant dealing with the consequences of her...Situation later.

Robin almost ran to the bathroom. As soon as she was sure the door was closed, she peeled her sticky clothes off and climbed in the bathtub. The water sprinkled down from the shower head, filling her with a cool relief that she hadn't felt in days. A safe feeling caressed her, coaxing the worries away from her head and placing them somewhere else.

Her serenity was interrupted by the sound of her house door slamming," Hey, Robin? ...Robin! Are you in here?! Robin! ...HELLO? I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE DRILL!"

Dear gods, it was Chrom. How the hell did he get in her apartment? Did Sumia give him a key or just leave the door wide open? The brown eyed girl scrambled to turn the shower off and climbed out of the tub," Chrom?! I-is that you? Er, if you could just wait outside, I'll just be a moment...,"

"What? Come on in? ...Gods, why is it so steamy in here? Did someone leave-"

Robin's eyes widened to the size of saucers when she realized the blue haired dolt had strolled right into the bathroom while she was still naked. So, she did what any sensible person would do; she screamed," KYAAAAA!"

He squinted through the steam," Ah, there you are. I can hardly see a thing through all this blasted steam... Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about tomorrow's march. You see...," His jaw dropped when his eyes fell on her body," Er, is there any special reason you aren't wearing any clothing?"

She flushed bright red and used her arms to cover up as much as she could. Where the hell was a towel when you needed one? She picked up the nearest object (which happened to be a toilet cleaner) and chucked it at him," Chrom?! Rather than stand there like a slack-jawed idiot... PERHAPS YOU COULD WAIT OUTSIDE LIKE I ASKED?!"

His face faded just as bright as hers as he stuttered out apologies," But, I... You... Oh gods, I'm SO sorry! I didn't mean to! That is to say—"

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUT!"

"R-right! Absolutely! Straightaway! I'll, er, wait outside the bathroom," With that said, he sped out the door faster than a cockroach under a light.

Robin groaned and ran a hand through her wet hair, letting out a string of loud and vulgar curses. Once her she had vented out her anger and at least calmed down a little bit, she pulled on her clothes from earlier and exited the bathroom. Chrom, who was sitting against the wall with a guilty expression, immediately shot up to greet her. Her anger faded away as soon as she saw the puppy-like expression on his face. She bit back a smile and started to scold him," All right, you! What sort of idiot blunders straight into the bathroom?!"

Chrom shrank," I'm sorry! Very, very sorry! I misheard you, I swear it. I had no intention of peeping!"

He looked so honest and guilty that she cracked," You promise you're telling the truth?"

"I solemnly swear," He confirmed, holding up his right hand in a boy-scout honors way.

She sighed,"...Just... Fine. Apology accepted. Now what was so damned important-"

"You have bruises," He blurted.

Realization hit Robin like a brick; of course he would notice. He had seen her naked, for gods sake! How could he miss the baseball sized purple sores that littered her body. She rubbed her arm nervously," Ah, yeah...about that."

"Is that why you never take off your sweatshirt?"

"Ah..."

"You always flinch whenever I touch you anywhere except your hands. Is it because it hurts whenever I accidentally do so?"

"I..."

Chrom's everlasting playfulness faded away, replaced by a serious stare down. She observed him curiously, wondering why there was a mixture of cool rage in his eyes," Who did that to you?"

She didn't know. All of the negative thoughts from the previous days were bubbling over and threatening to spill out; was she a Plegian? Who was Grima, and what did that have to do with her tattoo? Was she a distraction to direct Chrom and Frederick's attention away from the burning music, or was she actually in serious danger? Who was the man in her dream? Who was Marth? Why did Marth have a tattoo on his hand in the same spot as hers? Most importantly, why couldn't she remember anything? Robin's lip quivered," I-I don't know."

Chrom watched as she shook and almost slapped himself for being so stupid; She was scared. She had just woken up a few days ago with no memories and bruises. Was that why she refused to take her sweatshirt off? He had just assumed that it was comfortable or something. In one quick motion, he wrapped his arms around Robin and pulled her into his chest. She flinched, but didn't make a move to pull away. He took this as a good sign and enveloped her even closer into the hug," I'm sorry," He mumbled into her hair," I didn't think..."

The white haired girl stood stiffly, uncertain of how she should react," I..I'm.," She squeezed her eyes shut and leaned into him," I'm terrified."

"It'll be okay," He coaxed gently.

Robin shook her head stubbornly; why was he being so stupid? He had no idea who she was! She pushed herself away from him, slid down the wall, and forlornly buried her face in her arms," You don't understand," She choked out.

The brown eyed girl felt him settle down next to her. Chrom gently guided her hands and cradled them in his own. He opened his mouth to say something, but a pained expression crept into his features and  
convinced him not to comment. Instead, he leaned his head on hers," Don't worry; I'll keep you away from danger."

"Why would you-"

"Because I like you, Robin," He stated," All of my other friends treat me like I'm some prince or something, and you...you're different than many other person I've met. I can have a normal conversation with you without having you giggle like a schoolgirl or try to be somebody you're not. I know you know about my presidency, my drum-major position-"

"-Your fanclub."

He cringed," Yeah...them. Anyways, even thought I only met you a few days ago, I trust you."

"That choice is going to bite you in the butt."

Chrom smirked at her comment and continued," Why would I not? We're partners now, aren't we?"

A strange, warm feeling bubbled inside of her," W-What?"

"You know; comrades, companions, best friends," He babbled," We gotta have each other's backs, right?"

Best friends. Her eyes fell on their hands, a small smile creeping its way onto her face. She liked the sound of that. Now that she looked at it, her problems didn't seem that dangerous with Chrom by her side. Heck, they had gone through a lot in the past few days, and he had never left her side in the face of a threat once. If that wasn't friendship, she didn't know what was. Confidence overwhelmed fear as she allowed herself to beam," Right!"

His eyes brightened immensely when she said that," Good!" He stood up and brushed himself off. By this point, her just pulled her up with him without offering,"...And Robin? I'm really sorry about the bath thing. I honestly didn't mean to catch you like that."

Why did he have to bring _that_ up again? She crossed her arms defensively," It's fine. Water under the bridge. Let's forget about it and move on."

"Er, right. Yes. Good idea. So! I'll catch you later? Argh, no! I mean, I'll SEE you later! ...ARGH! NO! I mean...," He took a deep breath and started over," You know what? I'm starving! Let's go get some dinner."

Robin frowned," But I don't have any-"

"Don't worry, it's on me!"

Even though it was a lost cause, she protested," Chrom, you have to sop paying for me."

"Then just take it as a I'm sorry I walked in on you naked present!" The blue haired boy suggested as he dragged her out the door.

"Chrom!"

* * *

**So, I put a little backstory behind the C-Support between Chrom and Robin (There will be Chrom's backstory later and his connection to all of this, so hold on to your hats!). My OCs are Markel, Bryony, Hadlee, Erick, Hewitt, and Marie (I may add other characters later. Who knows?). There will be more otherly couple developement in the next few chapters (Sorry for all this Chrobin Spam. They're in the story a lot). Don't worry, Panne, Tharja, Anna, Tiki, Say'ri, and Henry will come in the story later. They're just not part of the current band. Comment time!**

**myra-is-a-tactitian:**** Thank you so much! I have plans for the future children, but their part in the story is when it starts to turn more turns fiction and not realistic fiction. I'm in theater but not choir, but YAY CHOIR anyways!  
**

**Timpani Bleck:**** That is a great guess! I like the idea of Sumia and Robin being book buddy best friends, so it is only natural that they are roommates! Anyways, it'd be odd if Chrom and Robin spent every living moment together when they're young. You're right about the mark on the hand, but Falchion may make an appearance with her. ;)**

**Neondaze:**** I'm so glad you liked the chapter! Seeing how you replied to previous chapters as well, I'll try to reply to stuff from both. Okay, so I too adore Chrom's dorkiness and his banter with Robin! I'll try to put as much of that in as I can, because that seems very in character for them. You also have a good guess about Tharja, but don't worry; she'll find many ways to creep out Robin (Even though she's married, tehehe.)****  
**

**Please continue to give me your feedback; I love hearing from you guys! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	5. Chapter 5 Harvest Scramble

**...Hi guys.**

**Sorry I haven't been active for, like, three weeks. I had tech week for the school show, _Into the Woods,_ and it was hard to find the right inspiration for this chapter. In fact, I wrote most of this chapter at midnight last night. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

Band Camp flew by extremely quickly after the incident. It was a good time to determine peoples' character for Robin; After Monday, Chrom had become a bit more protective of her. Thankfully, his wariness came hand in hand with a new level of companionship between the two, which she was grateful for. Sumia was just as accepting and kind as Chrom, even though Robin had decided to postpone telling anyone else about her bruises. It didn't seem to affect anything between the two girls, though. Whenever she wasn't with her fellow drum major, Sumia was hauling Robin around to either introduce her to the others or show her around.

Unfortunately, Cordelia often tagged along. It wasn't that Robin disliked the redhead; in fact, she was curious to see why the girl hated her. She had already figured out the Cordelia's crush on Chrom was huge, but much like Maribelle, she was defensive of her best friend. She didn't seem to like the fact that Robin was butting her way in their friendship very much, but hid it well whenever the three were together.

Thankfully, the only people that seemed to dislike her were Chrom's fangirls. In the duration of her week, she had discovered that Olivia was not only in colorguard, but also an aspiring dancer with an ironic sense of stage-fright. Sully was often found working out in her free time in order to keep her place on the boys varsity football team. When he wasn't flirting, Virion was a competitive chess player who could easily beat Robin in his sleep (his strategies were cheap).

Everything seemed to be going normally until Thursday night finally rolled around; At the end of the day, Sumia biked right past their apartment. Robin blinked in surprise, watching as they went farther and farther away from it," Uh, Sumia?"

"Mhm?"

"Your apartment is that way."

"I know."

"Oh...then where are we going?"

Sumia glanced back at her friend and sent her her sweetest smile," Don't worry, just trust me!"

Uh oh. Whenever someone said something along the lines of that, it meant that they were in for one heck of a ride," Seriously, where are we going?"

"I will seriously tell you once we get there!" She replied cheekily," What did I say about trust?"

Robin pouted," But Sumia-"

"No buts!"

"But-"

"NO BUTS!"

"Fine!"

Sumia grinned triumphantly and continued to pedal on until they reached a crisp, clean white house. The brunette slowed to a stop and grabbed Robin's hand, dragging her up to the front door and knocking four times. Much to the brown eyed girl's surprise, Maribelle opened the door," Ah, you're here. Well, come in! We're ready."

"Ready for what?" Robin questioned warily.

Suddenly, a bunch of girls from band camp jumped out of their hiding spots," SURPRISE!"

The drum major clutched her chest, trying to calm her pounding heart from the immense scare that she had just received," What's going on?"

"We're welcoming you into the Girl's of the Shepards Association, or GOTSA," Sumia explained," You see, as members of this secret organization, we have a code that we follow and we respect each other. During band camp, we determine which girls would be good to accept into our leagues and which ones aren't. As of now, you, May, and Hadlee are the only three we thought fit the bill!"

"Hadlee? Why him? I thought you said this was a girl's thing."

"Him? I'm a girl, silly!" A bubbly voice giggled. Robin glanced behind Maribelle, only to be faced with a freshman that had slightly lighter hair than Markel and vibrant orange eyes. She was wearing Pokemon pajamas and had a neon ski cap on top of her head," My name is Hadlee!"

The white haired girl shrank slightly," Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't think-I just-" She took a deep breath and held out her hand," I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. It's nice to meet you, Hadlee."

"Ditto!" She beamed before getting dragged off by a blonde freshman.

The three girls followed the two deeper into the house, where a plethora of females from the band were sitting. Robin recognized Cordelia, Cherche, Lissa, Bryony, and Olivia from earlier in the week, but there were a few new faces to her. Well, one in particular; A girl with vibrant green hair sat on the top of a couch braiding several pieces of Cherche's hair and laughing ecstatically.

Sumia noticed her confusion," That's Nowi, the head of percussion. She's really hyper, but also super sweet. Oh, and she's a senior, not a freshman."

"Really?"

"Yup!"

Lissa squealed when she noticed her friends enter," Hey guys! Is this everyone? Can we start the ceremony?"

"You just want to get it over with so we can eat the sweets Sumia and Cherche made," Cordelia teased. The blonde stuck her tongue out in return.

Maribelle held her hand up to silence the chatter and cleared her throat," Cordelia, as president of the

GOTSA, you have to make the do the pledge."

The red head nodded and pulled a worn notebook out of her bag. She placed it on the table in front of the three girls," Put your hand on top, please," They followed orders," Good. Now, as rightful members of GOTSA, you must pledge to never hurt your fellow sisters on purpose, mentally, emotionally, or physically. You must follow the bracelet code, which comes hand in hand with being true to yourself, your band, and your fellow sisters. If you agree to these terms, say aye."

"Aye!" Hadlee chirped, followed by May repeating it.

Robin had never been part of a sisterhood before. Hopefully it wasn't too cultish-

Cult. That seemed like something she was all to familiar with. Once again, her eyes fell on her right hand. Thankfully, she had used her left to do the pledge, so know one had seen her tattoo yet. What exactly did it mean, and why did she feel sick whenever she looked at it? Cordelia cleared her throat," Well?"

"Aye!" Robin blurted, yanking herself away from her thoughts.

Cordelia stared at her for awhile before giving her a brief nod," Welcome to GOTSA."

The girls around the room cheered. Once everything had died down, Maribelle pulled out three, silk bags. She handed them out to each girl," These are the bracelets that we use for code."

The white haired girl rose her eyebrow curiously before opening her sack; inside were six bracelets. One of them was gray, two were black, one was white, one was gold, and the last was purple. When she looked at the other inductees, their bracelets were differently colored as well. Maribelle held up her own wrist, which had an array of pink bracelets, up and explained," Each bracelet represents something different. As your band experience moves on, you will distribute these to who you think deserves them the most. You will give the top one to your most trusted friend, the one underneath to the most important person to you, and the one below that to your "sister". Beneath that will be the one you give to your crush, and under that one for your other half, I.E. your eventual spouse. The bracelet at the very bottom is yours to keep."

Lissa held up her wrist, revealing a mess of yellow bracelets and one pink one," For example, Maribelle gave me the one that means her most trusted friend. She has my bracelet for that one as well!"

"Under no circumstances can you tell anyone, especially boys, about the bracelet code," Cherche ordered.

"The boys will figure out that we have a secret code for who we have crushes on if they do," Bryony grumbled.

Olivia blushed deeply," I'd die if a boy found out I liked him!"

Cordelia and Sumia nodded feverishly in agreement, both obviously thinking about Chrom. Cherche snorted and mumbled something about stepping up, while Nowi pouted about how she looked "too young" for boys her age. Before any further comments could be made, the doorbell rang," I'll get it," Maribelle chirped.

Much to Robin's surprise, Emmeryn entered, accompanied by three other women her age. She smiled gracefully at her siblings' friend," Have you joined yet?"

The black haired girl next to her with long bangs hugged herself tightly," Of course she has. She's wearing the bracelets."

The drum major noted that the women that had just entered wore band bracelets as well," Oh, did you go to Ylisse High in the past?"

The women nodded," Yes, we were some of the original GOTSA members," Emmeryn replied cheerily," These are my friends from high school; Philia, Miriel, and the dark haired one is Tharja."

Before Robin could introduce herself, Lissa grabbed her hand and dragged her off in the other direction," Come on! I made cupcakes!"

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Once band camp had finally ended, Chrom dragged Robin straight from practice to a nearby field," Judging by the blank look on your face, I'm guessing that no one told you about the Harvest Festival."

She quirked an eyebrow," What's the Harvest Festival?"

"It's a carnival the Ylisse puts together the weekend before school starts. It's a tradition for us Shepards to go after our Friday practice ends," He explained excitedly while swinging her hand back and forth. By this point, she was used to his contact with her, so she wasn't fazed," It'll be busy, so make sure not to wander off too far."

Robin rolled her eyes," Okay, _mom_."

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Cordelia crossed her arms irritably after her best friend finished selling a pie to the costumer. The girls had agreed to take the first shift for the Shepards Bake Sale, but instead of being the fun bonding experience the redhead was hoping for, Sumia was starting to irritate her," Sumia? Can I have a word?"

The brunette looked up from one of her rhubarb pies and smiled sweetly," Of course, Cordelia! What's up?"

The girl's eye twitched," What's up? More like what's down. As in, all over the ground. When you were hauling supplies earlier, you dropped and smashed a crate, didn't you?"

"Oh, that," Sumia mumbled," Er, yeah, sort of..."

She narrowed her eyes," You do realize this is a fundraiser, right? We can't afford to lose precious supplies on account of ridiculous accidents. ...I also happen to know it was YOU who knocked over those stands yesterday."

Her friend's face was progressively turning more pink by the second," O-Oh, you saw that too, huh...I'm SO sorry. I was just trying to-ARGH, I'm really sorry! That thing was a total accident! I can explain—"

Cordelia frowned," I don't need apologies or excuses! You must understand this is a competition we are headed in. Even a small mistake can wind up costing a loss! When that happens, are you going to say sorry to those of us who are seniors and will never get the chance to make it up?"

Her friend's eyes widened in mortification," I-I know, Cordelia... I know I shouldn't be so clumsy... I try SO hard all the time, but stuff just...," Sumia sniffled,"..keeps happening...I should go," Without warning, she took off in a different direction.

Cordelia grimaced," Sumia, wait! Don't run off! Drat. She looked really upset. Maybe I was too hard on her...," She leaned against the table and ran a hand through her hair. It was hard enough that Robin was stealing Chrom's affections and Sumia's friendship. Now the stress was causing her lash out on other people.

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To say Vaike annoyed Lon'qu was an understatement. For some reason, the idiot had taken it upon him to 'take the new snare drum under his wing', and now he refused to leave the boy alone. Much like Robin, Lon'qu had never attended the Harvest festival, and admitting that in the presence of the the blonde was turning out to be the worst decision of his life.

Vaike grinned," Ogre's teeth! It's one hell of a dull Festival out here, eh? Whaddya say, Lon'qu? Let's light some fireworks and get this party started!"

"Shut up. I'm observing suspicious characters. Your mindless chatter is distracting."

"Pfft. Fiiine, Lord Serious. Have it your way," For a moment, it looked like he was going to drop the subject, but the baritone picked the conversation right back up," But take it from ol' Teach... Standin' there all day with your shoulders all knotted is just gonna wear ya out. Sometimes ya gotta relax and learn to let your hair down! In fact, once we've taken care of business here, I'm gonna show ya how. We'll jump into this fair and have a whale of a time. Sound good?"

Lon'qu glared at him," No."

The boy didn't seem to be ready to accept defeat any time soon," Look, the Vaike's makin' an effort here—least ya could do is meet me halfway. Ya keep brushin' people off like this, and eventually no one's gonna like ya! Speakin' of brushin' off, I heard ya have a hard time treatin' with ladyfolk. Course, it's just a daft rumor, and I'm sure there's not a grain of truth to it. A good-lookin' kid like you goin' all knock-kneed at the sight of a lass? Hah! Sounds like a pillowcase of shit to me!"

"Pillowcase of...Nevermind, I don't want to know," Lon'qu shook his head," I don't expect you to understand me, nor do I care if you do."

Vaike took his additional comment as motivation," Wait, so yer sayin' there's some truth to it? You're an odd fish, that's for sure. ...But damn if this thing about women ain't gnawin' at my skull. It makes no sense—unless, maybe, you were scarred by some bad experience? Is that it? True love did you wrong? She dump ya for some jock?"

"Not at all."

"Then what's the problem? Ya gotta tell ol' Vaike!"

"Will you PLEASE go away?" It was more of a command than a request. Unfortunately, the blonde was too daft to pick up on it.

Vaike crossed his arms," Must be one hell of a secret, if yer so determined to stay mum about it...," His eyes widened in realization,"...WAAAIT A MINUTE. I get it now. Har! Why didn't ya just say so? That ain't nothin' to be ashamed of! You should be proud that yer into-"

"SILENCE! The last thing I need is you making up nonsensical theories of your own," As much as he didn't want to share his past with the dumbass, he preferred that over the assumptions he was making," Fine. I shall tell you the whole story. It's a sad tale, one I do not like to share, but... If it means shutting you up, then so be it. It all began—"

Vaike held up his hand to silence him," Say no more, my mysterious new friend! The Vaike understands! I gotta go share the news with everyone... I finally figured out Lon'qu's big secret!"

Lon'qu eyes widened," Wh-what?! What have you figured out?! Come back here, damn you! I haven't told you anything yet you infuriating bastard!"

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Of course Robin had wandered off. One minute Chrom was chatting with a member of the basketball team, the next his white haired companion had disappeared. As the boy frantically combed through the fairgrounds to find her, he had been accosted by an oddly childish Frederick pestering him to throw a coin into a stupid fountain. Thankfully, his wife dragged him away before the teacher could embarrass himself.

To make matters worse, he had almost tripped over a sobbing Sumia. If that wasn't bad enough, he tripped over a pebble on his way out. Thankfully, it seemed to brighten the clarinets spirits slightly, and she swore to keep it a secret with a giddy look on her face.

Oh, and Vaike also told Chrom that Lon'qu was gay, but the bluenette decided to ignore him.

He finally collapsed by the Shepard's stall to regain his energy back. Cordelia shyly waved at him, but his focus was on something else," What a delicious-looking cake," He murmured," Soft, spongy layers smothered in icing...," He glanced across the walkway, where his eyes fell upon a jewelry stall. Normally, he wasn't interested in girly things like that, but something drew him over there," And what's that? Is it an amulet of some kind?"

"Hey, Blue. What are you up to?"

Chrom nearly jumped out of his skin," Gah! Don't surprise me like-" His eyes narrowed when he realized who he was talking to," Gaius."

The ginger grinned while simultaneously sucking on a lollipop," Heya. Why're you looking at jewelry?"

Chrom cleared his throat awkwardly and attempted to change the subject," Aren't these stalls fascinating? Such a weird and wonderful array of food and stuff!"

"You think?" He scanned the area," Looks like regular old festival fare to me. If I've seen this stuff once, I've seen it a thousand times...Ah, but you're usually working the basketball booth, right? Being a popular and all?"

Chrom shrugged," Not all that often, I'm embarrassed to admit... Frankly, the organs of most of these clubs are something of a mystery to me. Seriously, who made up the Kids who like Green club?,

"Or the Chrom fanclub?"

"Shut it."

Gaius snickered," Okay, okay. Lucky for you, I know just how to make it up to you; I'll teach you anything you want to know about the festival. You know, like what's good to eat, which games are fun, which are a scam... I'd wager I've seen more fairs than you've had hot custard pies."

Chrom furrowed his eyebrows," What the heck is a custard-Nevermind," He pondered his choices. On one hand, Giaus was a cheating slacker who didn't give a crap about anything and associated himself with the bad boys of the school. On the other hand, he seemed to be pretty optimistic, and Chrom wasn't one to discriminate against others,"...Well, it would be nice to have a guide—...Hm? What's going on? There appears to be a commotion in the plaza..."

"Thief! Someone stole my wallet!"

"Crap! Mine's missing too!"

Chrom frowned," Uh-oh. This sounds like the work of a cutpurse... First he creates a distraction, then he relives his marks of their coins...Gaius?"

"Er, what? Oh, n-nothin'. I just...I've got an errand to run! If you'll excuse me..."

What came over him? Maybe I should...

"Chrom! Over here! We need to throw a coin in the fountain! If two people toss a coin into the fountain at the same time...they'll be bound by powerful affection that will last until death do them part!"

The teenagers eyes widened in fear as Frederick approached him," Till death do them part?! Now, w-wait a second!"

Frederick ignored him and began to drag him away," Come on! We cannot let this opportunity pass us by. The fountain is this way. And don't worry—I've a purse full of coins!"

"Frederick, will you slow down?! First off, this legend—surely it's meant for lovers? You know, young men and women hoping for a long and happy marriage?"

The brunette waved his hand," Heavens forbid! Marriage is a union of equals! A couple on the same footing! You and I are not equals! How could it possibly be the same thing?!"

Chrom rose his eyebrow," I won't even ask. Secondly, where did you get a coin purse-"

"Frederick!" The two men flinched at the woman's tone, knowing exactly who it was," I thought I told you not to embarrass me."

Her husband tugged at his collar nervously," Th-Tharja? I assure you, I wasn't trying to-"

The dark haired woman grabbed his tie and tugged him down to her eye level. Her infant daughter in her arms found this amusing, so she grabbed a fistful of his hair and giggled," I am your wife, _not_ Chrom."

"Wife?" Chrom sighed in relief when Robin approached the odd group," Ooh, are you talking about Freddy's spouse? Where is she-hold on," She blinked," Tharja, don't tell me that you're his wife!"

Chrom cringed and instinctively pulled the white haired girl out of harm's way. Much to his surprise, the normally terrifying woman shrugged and released her husband," Yeah. Emmeryn didn't mention your relationship with her brother."

"Ah, we aren't dating or anything. We're just friends," Robin's eyes fell on the child in Tharja's arms," Hold on, don't tell me that you have a child too!"

Frederick relaxed a little bit at this and coaxed the tiny brunette out of his wife's," This is our beautiful six month old daughter, Noire," The tiny child shied away from the strangers into her daddy's chest," She's a bit timid around strangers."

"Oh? Why?"

Tharja darkened considerably," While I was holding a meeting for my cult at our house, one of the members experimented to see doing different things would effect her mental state. Let's just say that they're still missing an ear."

Robin rose her eyebrow," You're...in a cult?"

"I was in a cult," She corrected," What did you say your name was again?"

"Oh right, I'm sorry! I totally forgot to introduce myself; My name is Robin."

Tharja's eyes widened in shock," R-Robin?"

Frederick frowned and placed his free hand on his wife's shoulder," Darling, are you alright?"

"I-I'm fine," She took a deep breath and grabbed her spouse's wrist," Come on, I want to watch people get stung by bees."

Frederick stumbled after her," But, wait! I haven't done the coin toss with Chrom yet! Please, just one little toss of a coin! I assure you it won't take that long!"

"I will throttle you first."

"But-Chrom, where are you going?!"

The blue haired boy snorted and lead Robin away, chuckling at his teacher's misfortune," Come on, let's leave the lovebirds to themselves."

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Sumia had finally composed herself and returned to the booth, praying that her friend would not be too angry with her," Er, Cordelia...I'm sorry for running away from you earlier."

Cordelia brightened immensely with a mixture of relief and joy," No, I would've done the same thing. Actually, I should be the one apologizing. I spoke too harshly. I know you do your best. I shouldn't have gone on for so long about it. It's just been...stressful lately."

"Oh, gosh, NO!" The clarinetist burst. She cupped her friend's hands in hers and smiled reassuringly," You didn't do anything wrong at all! You were totally right! I know I mess up all the time, and I know it causes trouble for everyone..."

Cordelia cringed," Look, Sumia-"

"I might not get better right away, but I really, REALLY want to improve! So would you mind just keeping an eye on me a little while longer...? You know, in case I mess up again?"

Cordelia squeezed the girl's hands," Of course not, Sumia."

She beamed," Oh, thank you! I promise you won't regret this!" Sumia jumped up and enveloped her buddy in a hug," You're the best! Ooh, by the way, Cordelia, while I have you here...," She began digging around her bag," At one of the stands, I saw these cute little pegasus-feather necklaces...aha!" She pulled matching ones out," I got one for us! Yours is black, and mine is silver!"

Cordelia flushed bright red and gingerly took her present," Oh, it's beautiful! I'm glad that we solved this argument before it turned into a real fight. It's nice to see you smiling again. That cheerful face of yours has always made me feel better during a bad time."

"It has? ...Wait, that's a good thing, right?"

"Of course it is, silly. It calms my nerves and allows me to focus."

Sumia's grin widened," Oh, really? I never knew... Well, thanks, Cordelia. It means a lot knowing I'm at least a little bit helpful. You're the best!"

Cordelia smiled back," How could I be the best when I've got you for a friend? Now as soon as people come in to cover for us, let's get some cotton candy, just like we used to when we were little kids!"

* * *

**Okay, so Tharja is Freddy's wife! I married them during my first playthrough of the game, and I like the dynamic they have together (not to mention that they are unstoppable on the battlefield). Don't worry, her obsessive nature with Robin will come soon! I also made it so that instead of Tharja trying to hurt Noire, she's trying to make it up to the poor kid (She's a psychologist). Anyways, I hinted on oncoming friendships that wil appear later in the story, and the bracelet code. If you have any feedback, I'd love to hear it! **

**Myra-is-a-tactition: ****Will it freak you out too badly if I said I highly considered making him a colorguard member? In the end, I decided not to because I have another character that will join Olivia on the squad later in the story.**

**Thanks for reading guys!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	6. Chapter 6 The First Day of School

**Hey guys!**

**It's spring break, so I'm going to try and update as much as possible! Once it's over, I'll probably go back to posting once every 1-2 weeks. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter! **

* * *

Robin fiddled with her hands nervously as she looked in her locker. She had been dreading the first day of school since Emmeryn mentioned that she would enrol the girl. Despite everyone's best attempts to reassure her, she was still terrified. What if she wasn't as smart as the others? What if they tried to bring up something about her past.

Lissa watched her new friend accidentally slam the locker and set a comforting hand on her shoulder," It'll be alright! I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"

"I don't know; the people that hu-" She stopped, realizing what she almost revealed,"-hug too much could...Uh...hug me."

The blonde frowned and looked down at the ground," I like hugging."

Robin cursed silently at her own stupidity and laughed awkwardly to cover her tracks," I wasn't talking about you, I was-"

Almost as if she flicked on a light switch, the girl was perky again," Perfect, because here comes the hug train!" Lissa pounced on her, wrapping her arms around her tightly.

"The hug train?" Sumia giggled as she approached," Do you have room for one more passenger, conductor Exalt?"

The white haired girl cursed under her breath," Sumia, don't-"

"Of course it does!"

"No, it actually doesn't-" Sumia ignored her and enveloped the girls in a hug," Can't...breath!"

Lissa rolled her eyes playfully and released her," Oh, if you insist! Did it make you feel any better?"

The drum major chuckled warmly," I guess," Her eyes wandered past her friends and fell on a certain blue haired boy," Oh, hey Chrom!"

He lit up and guided his friend, Stahl, over to the girls' conversation," Good morning, ladies! I got your coffee, Robin," He handed her the mug that she had used during band camp week (she secretly has claimed it as her cup) and beamed," Do you have the Breakfast Cakes?"

She nodded and pulled the chocolate treat from her bag," It wouldn't be a fair morning exchange if I didn't," The two traded items, ignoring the gluttonous glances Stahl kept sending them," So this is Ylisse High? I've never seen so many people in one school-not that I would remember."

Chrom nodded and leaned against the locker next to hers," It appears the rest of the school was spared the damage the band encountered, thank the gods."

Sumia agreed," What a relief!"

Stahl opened his mouth to add something, but someone caught his eye," Look! The Principal is coming to see us!"

"The principal?" Robin questioned curiously. No one had spoken about her before, yet they all seemed so delighted to see her.

"Miss Exalt is a symbol of peace—Ylisse's most prized quality," Frederick stated, causing the girl jump in shock. She didn't notice him sneak up behind her," Long ago, when the town was at the peak of it's times, the Grimleal tried to overthrow the mayor and take over the town. But, the first Exalt joined forces with the mayor and destroyed their evil leader. The Exalt family reminds us all of the peace we fought for then."

Robin furrowed her eyebrows; she knew about the Exalt's family triumph, but she didn't know what it had to do with the principal. Chrom grinned," With Plegia poking at our teams and clubs, the people need her. She's a calming presence."

That didn't answer any of her questions," Then the Ylissean High Schoolers are indeed lucky to have her...are we talking about the principal or Emmeryn? Then again, "Miss Exalt" could also mean Lissa..."

Said girl giggled," Emmeryn is both the best principal and the best big sister anyone could ask for!"

"Yes, I imagine she...Wait, what? She's your...," She stared at the two Exalt siblings," But wouldn't that make you and Chrom..."

"The principal's family, yes. You remember Chrom's name and not this?" Frederick asked warily.

Robin sent him a pointed glare; she had hoped he would've dropped his suspicions by this point," Why didn't you mention this before?" She smirked," Well, I guess that explains why Frederick tolerates all the teasing, eh?"

Frederick responded with a glare of his own," I do not tolerate their teasing because their older sister is my boss, I tolerate it because they are very important people to me. Don't question my loyalty to them."

Chrom stepped inbetween the two before anything could get worse," Frederick, I appreciate your heartwarming intentions, but you can trust Robin. Robin, don't be too hard on him, he is very dear to both Lissa and I," He nodded to the both of them before placing a charming grin on," It looks like Emm is coming over here. Would you like to talk with her?"

"She might be able to help with your nerves," Sumia added.

"Nerves?" Chrom mumbled. Why was she nervous? Why hasn't she mentioned it to him before? He could've helped-

"Might?" Lissa burst," Of course she can help with your nerves! My big sister is the best person in the entire world! She'll know exactly what to say! Emm! EMM!"

The sunny haired woman smiled in acknowledgement and moved to greet the group," Hello again, Lissa and Chrom. Good morning, Frederick," She turned to the other three students and waved kindly," It's nice to see you three again. How are you all feeling?"

Stahl patted his stomach," Hungry, but pleasant."

"I'm in a good mood as well, thank you!" Sumia chirped.

"I'm fine," Robin added.

"Liar!"

"Lissa-"

The younger sister rolled her eyes and explained to her sister," Robin's nervous."

"Oh dear," Emmeryn replied," I can't say I understand what you're feeling, but I do know what it's like to start a new school after a tough time," Robin couldn't help but notice her sibling's flinch at her words. Apparently the principal did as well, because she held out her arm," How about we go to my office and get your schedule created?"

"What about the bell? Won't I be tardy?"

"Tardy for what class?" She responded teasingly," Come along, dear."

"O-Okay. Bye guys," Robin anxiously took the oldest Exalt's arm and allowed her to guide her to her office.

As soon as they entered, the blue haired girl from earlier, Philia, stood up," Welcome back, Emmeryn. This is Miss Robin, correct?"

"I'm glad you remembered. Can you please make Robin a schedule while I help our new student feel comfortable?" Emmeryn asked. The vice principal nodded and set to work, giving the two the signal to enter the blonde's office. The walls were a comforting spring green color, and a small fish tank stood in the corner. Emmeryn sat herself down at her desk and offered Robin the chair across from her. Once the two were situated, the woman started up her conversation," Now, is there anything you'd like to speak about? I promise to listen to whatever you have to say."

Robin fiddled with her cup and shrugged," I...Uh...I'm just nervous, that's all."

Emmeryn shook her head in agreement," I would be too, if I were in your place. Is there anything in particular you're nervous about?"

Something about the comforting tone in her voice made Robin spill everything," I don't know what to do or who I am. How am I supposed to attend a school if I don't know how much I know?"

"From why Chrom has said, I am very convinced that you are perfectly intelligent and capable of picking up where you left off," She paused," This is high school, after all. The hardest thing you'll come across is keeping track of homework and studying for tests."

Robin took a sip of her coffee," I guess that's true, but...," She took a deep breath and sunk back into her chair," What if people start asking about who I am? What am I supposed to tell them? What if they don't believe me? Heck, Frederick doesn't believe me-"

"-Of course he does," Emmeryn reassured," And if not, he has every intention to trust you."

"But-"

"He made you one of his drum majors, did he not?"

The white haired girl turned pink and turned her attention to the ground," Y-Yeah, I guess he did."

"He's a good man and a close friend of mine. In fact, I think the only person who knows him better than I would be his wife," Emmeryn chuckled," Any-who, you mentioned your worries about your identity. I could poke my nose around previous records to see if I could find someone who may know you if it'd make you feel better."

Robin perked up," Wait, you can do that?"

"I don't see why not," She replied," Though I must warn you; sometimes the truth hurts more than not knowing."

"I don't care. If someone knows who I am, I'll happily talk to them!" The drum major said confidently," Until then, what should I say my last name is?"

Emmeryn pondered her question thoughtfully," Well, usually when they find a nameless person, they name him John Doe. I know that you are neither a man or nameless, but how about the last name of Doe? I think that Robin Doe has a nice ring to it."

Robin bit her lip to hide her excitement," Yeah, I like it! Thank you so much!"

Philia poked her head inside the office," Excuse me, but I've finished up Miss Robin's schedule."

"Thank you, Philia," Emmeryn cheered," Class is about to start soon. Would you like me to lead you to your first class?"

Robin turned pink," Oh no, I think I can find my way," She turned to exit, but something stopped her," Um, actually, there's someone I'd like to ask you about..."

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The morning went by smoothly for Robin, and she was thankful to have at least one friend in each class. She shared her first hour, Politics, with Chrom, Virion, and surprisingly, Lon'qu. Lissa was the only band member in her second hour study hall, other than Hewitt, who seemed to like to keep to himself. Finally, third hour English was shared with Sumia and Cordelia, so by the time lunch rolled around, Sumia had the perfect chance to drag Robin to their table.

Once the brunette made sure her new friend and best friend were settled, she set off to buy herself lunch. As soon as she left, the atmosphere turned awkward. Cordelia turned to ignore her, instead focusing in the items in her lunch bag. Robin sighed softly and went to cut her apple, only to accidentally knick herself instead," Ow! Gods, how stupid am I? It's bleeding! It's bleeding a lot!... What to do, what to do..."

Cordelia rolled her eyes," Would you like a band-aid or something?"

Robin eyes widened as she sucked on her finger," Really? Ah, that'd be great! Thank you, Cordelia," She beamed as the teenager handed her the bandage and stuck it onto herself," Much better! Wait, Why do you have a pack of band-aids on you?"

"I just like to stay on top of things," She paused for a brief moment," That, and I'm best friends with Sumia, who is clumsier than the normal human being-"

The white haired girl nodded thoughtfully," Yeah, that makes sense-"

"Not to mention the fact that Lissa always pokes herself with a needle whenever we're sewing in home ec, Vaike is...well, Vaike, Nowi is known for getting splinters from her drumsticks, Stahl will accidentally stab himself with a fork on occasion, Sully is on the varsity football team, Cherche's dog likes to bite her, oh, and I don't want to even get started on the weird situations Virion gets himself into-"

Robin gawked at the redhead," Wait, you keep track of EVERYONE'S health?! ...All in your head?"

Cordelia shrugged as if it weren't a big deal," Of course. Someone has to look after them."

"...Gods. I can certainly see why everyone calls you a genius."

Much to her surprise, Cordelia flinched," Do not call me that!" She demanded.

Robin shrank back," Oh, I'm sorry... I meant no offense, I swear!"

She examined her for a few minutes before waving if off,"...No, of course you didn't. Please forgive me. It's just that...my old friends from a private school I used to go to called me that from the moment I joined. It was so very hard sometimes... Little Lady genius, they called me. They teased and taunted me..."

"Oh...," Guilt began to make it's way into Robin's heart. Emmeryn had mentioned something about Cordelia moving to this school because of personal reasons, but she said that it wasn't her information to share.

"They mocked me, too... My appearance, and my writing style..."

"I assure you, when I called you a genius, I meant it only as a compliment."

Cordelia softened and twirled her fork distractedly," I know. I'm just overly sensitive, that's all."

Robin nodded in understanding," Well, if you ever need to talk, just let me know," She thought back to what Emmeryn said to calm her nerves earlier and decided to try the same thing with the cornet player," I promise to listen to anything you want to say."

"Well, since you offered..." Cordelia took a deep breath, mustering up all the courage she had. She could do this; it was just one measely question. The girl looked her dead in the eye," Do you and Chrom have feelings for each other?"

Robin snorted at the very idea," Him and I? Oh no, we're just friends. I could never date him."

This made her brighten considerably," Really? Because-well, don't tell anyone, but I have a HUGE crush on him! I've had feelings for him since my freshman year, and while he has dated other girls, I don't want to give up hope just yet-Ah, I'm babbling."

The drum major smiled in relief, glad that the girl had dropped her glare and replaced it with a bashful smile. If supporting her relationship with Chrom was the first step to becoming friends with her, Robin was willing to take that step," Well how about this? You have obviously liked him for the longest, so I promise never to date him without your consent first?" It was a ridiculous statement because she didn't have feelings for him in the first place, but it made Cordelia beam," I mean, it's what friends do, right?"

Cordelia felt conflicted; her first impression of Robin was a friend/potential boyfriend stealing slut, but the girl was making such an effort to befriend her. Not many people had done that before, especially since she had the reputation as Chrom's number one fangirl. Finally, she made up her mind," Of course!"

Robin released the breath she didn't realize she had been holding," Good, because I really want to be friends with you."

Although she didn't show it, Cordelia was extremely touched.

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Chrom crossed his arms irritably," Fortunately no one got hurt, but you have to be more careful in the future."

Ricken nodded furiously," I'm so sorry! It wont happen again-I promise! I just didn't think the stands would tip over each other like dominos, I swear!"

"Now is not the time to discuss it," The drum major snapped," Make sure to clean it up before lunch is over, got it?"

"Y-yes, sir."

Chrom frowned, contemplating if he was being too harsh on the kid or not, but in the end decided that the mess had to be cleaned up. He waved slightly to Ricken before leaving the freshman alone. The boy sighed and begrudgingly began to pick everything up.

Nowi slowly crawled out of her hiding spot in the band lockers and made her way over," I'm sorry, Ricken. I didn't mean to fall asleep, honest. But I couldn't keep my eyes open. Your music was just too pretty and soothing-"

The clarinetist sighed and wondered why on earth the senior had decided to listen to him play in the first place. She had said that she was only coming in the duct tape her drum stick back into one piece, but she ended up staying for longer than she had intended. It wasn't that part that bothered him; truthfully, he was flattered that she liked his music that much. What annoyed him was that Nowi had fallen asleep while standing up and fell over, effectively knocking a stand down. That stand managed to fall and tip the one next to it down, and so on. In a last minute decision, Ricken decided to take the blame because he was only a freshman, and if Nowi got in trouble, she could be demoted from first chair. So, he told her to hide and took the consequences," Geez, Nowi! You have to promise to stop visiting me while I play. I don't want you to fall asleep again and destroy half the room."

The girl quivered," B-but, I can't get to sleep because of my insomnia..."

Insomnia? He didn't know she had insomnia. In fact, he didn't know anything about her other than her name, her instrument, and her childish nature," Oh, I didn't know," Ricken stuck his tongue out while he tried to think of a situation," Look, Mr. Warry allows me to practice here after school. What if you bring a pillow or a sleeping bag? You can fall asleep to my music and not disturb anything. Would that help you?"

Nowi clapped her hands in excitement," Oh, sure! That ought to work!"

"Perfect! Now let's keep this domino-stand accident our little secret, okay?"

"Okay! Thanks, Ricken! I'll see you after school!" The green haired girl turned to scamper off, but froze," Oh, silly me! I almost forgot!" She flipped around and began to pick up some of the fallen stands," It's my fault this happened, so let me help you clean it up!"

The freshman grinned," Really? Gee, thanks!"

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For starters, Gaius didn't like his friends.

Well, he couldn't exactly call them friends in the first place. In all honesty, they were a bunch of freaks that got pleasure from humiliating other people. Sure, half the time it was extremely funny, but sometimes, he'd feel bad about their plans.

Now was one of those times.

Vasto tilted his head towards some blonde chick," What about her? She looks easy."

"Are you kidding? That's Pheros!" Orton smirked," Of course she's easy!"

Gaius rose his eyebrow with an unimpressed expression. Pheros was the scariest woman in the entire school, aside from Sully. What a bunch of idiots.

Orton interrupted the Ginger's thoughts and chortled," I know! Let's make a game out of it! We each pick a complete loser and see which one of us can do the do first!"

"Oh? Who do you suggest we go after?" Vasto questioned wolfishly.

"Well, there are a few options," Orton started," First off, we could go after Pheros-"

"Mine!" Vasto claimed.

The boy continued," I guess that leaves me with Raimi," Gaius cringed for his 'friend'. Who was stupid enough to try and bring an apprentice cop to bed? Orton sent a smirk towards Gaius," Now, who do we get for little ginger here?"

"Don't bring me into your death wish game-"

"How about...Sumia?" Vasto suggested," That loser is known for falling on her face; I bet it won't be hard to make her fall into bed."

"Whoa, whoa, did I just hear that right? You want me to seduce Stumbles? I'm just here for the candy. You know, line my pockets with some goods. From what I've seen, the kid's harmless...Sure, I'll rob her blind, but I'd never harm her!" Gaius interjected.

The two stared at him for a long time until Vasto broke it with a shrug," Okay, we'll trade then; You Pheros and I get Sumia."

This was some pickle he had gotten himself into. Heck, he didn't even want to get into it in the first place! Sure, he didn't really care about the nerd, but she was an influential band member, and he needed band to stay out of doing volunteer service. One peep from the girl and he'd be out faster than a cheetah on steroids. Gaius reviewed his options carefully before making a decision," No, no, no, I'll take Sumia. That means that she's all mine," He added," You can't go near her."

The duo exchanged a look before leering," Sounds like a deal. Whoever gets in bed with their girl first is the winner."

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For some reason, Robin's first band class had a higher tension than normal. Gaius seemed incredibly stiff, Chrom kept clenching his fists, and Lissa looked like she was trying not to cry. Maribelle wasn't there at all.

Before she could further question the situation, Chrom pulled her to the side," Stay after school, got it? Don't mention anything to Frederick."

The amount of seriousness in his voice shocked her; Robin was so used to him being a charming goofball, and was surprised to see this side of him. In fact, the only time she had seen him use this tone was when he was talking to Marth. Did it have something to do with him?

As soon as class ended, most of the students filed out to head home. Only Chrom, Lissa, Stahl, Sully, and surprisingly, Lon'qu stayed. As soon as the room was mostly empty, Chrom explained," I got a unanimous message today saying that one of our piccolo players snuck into their school to spy on them."

Lissa's worst fears were confirmed," B-but that would be...Maribelle! Chrom, we have to do something!"

Stahl frowned solemnly," There's more: Gangrel, Plegia's drum major, claims that Maribelle tried to destroy his property. He demands we pay reparations for this "insult.""

"And we're to believe a dastard like the Mad King of Plegia?" Sully grumbled.

Robin realized that she had to take hold of the situation before the Shepards set off to do something stupid," Keep a clear head, guys. We must keep our wits about us."

"We should put a sword in his gut and be done with it!" Chrom growled.

Stahl placed a calming hand on his friend's shoulder and explained the situation to Robin and Lon'qu," The Mad King has been trying to provoke a fight with whatever Ylissian he can! He won't stop until he drags this whole school to hell with him."

The percussionist nodded thoughtfully," I agree. We must not back down from Plegia's threats."

"I understand your feelings, Chrom. Truly I do," Everyone flipped around to see Sumia standing in the doorway," But if we give him the fight he wants, then we lose...Our last conflict nearly ruined the band program. It left the Shepards scrambling for members and funding. We cannot repeat that mistake."

Chrom narrowed his eyebrows at her," I don't recall inviting-"

"I was looking for Robin," The biker replied with equal spite," But after hearing the situation, I've decided to help."

"Then what do you suggest we do?"

Robin spoke up before she realized what she was doing," I'm going to try and negotiate with Gangrel."

Lissa gasped," Robin, no! You can't! He doesn't play fair!"

"That piece of shit is going to sweet talk you and stab you in the back as soon as you turn around," Sully warned venomously.

"So either we choose to start a fight or leave Maribelle to the enemy?" Robin shook her head," No. I will not accept that."

Chrom stormed up to Robin and glared at her," Do you honestly think he's just going to hand her over after we talk about our feelings? We have to take action-"

"-people will get hurt if we do!"

"Maribelle will get hurt if we don't!"

The white haired girl didn't back down," Would Emmeryn fight?!" This caused both Exalt siblings to back down slightly," We need to handle this situation as adults in order to avoid violence."

Chrom stared at her for a long time, battling two different opinions in his head. Finally, he stepped down," I know you're not going to back down from this," He ran his hand through his hair irritably," You're not going alone; I'm coming."

Sumia agreed," I'm going too. ...Someone has to save you from your good intentions."

Lissa sniffled and placed on a brave face," And I want to be there for you AND Maribelle!"

"You're going to get yourself killed," Sully remarked," But I'm coming as well-"

"-Hold, milady!" Virion sauntered in and cupped one of the football player's hands in his," Life may be long, but attraction is fleeting! Would you leave me in your sweet dust? Leave war to the warriors, dear bird! A beauty such as you need wage only love."

Sully blinked in a mix of confusion and annoyance," ...The hell are you talking about?!"

Virion chuckled," Ha! Is the lady intrigued? Of course you are—it's only natural. I am myth and legend! I am he who strides large across history's greatest stage! The man who puts the-"

"Sorry, Ruffles—no time for this," She interrupted after Chrom made a motion towards his wrist," Let's move out! Get out of the way!" When the flirt didn't, she kicked him in the shin.

Virion squeaked and doubled over, ignoring the laughs that his fellow Shepards were directing at him," OOF! G-goodness, but those shapely legs certainly can kick, can't they-," The football player tried to push her way past him," P-please, milady! Allow me to accompany you, at least! Mine is a cold, empty world without you. I shall be your most willing servant, and you, in turn, will give my life purpose-"

Sully groaned," Fine... Anything to shut you up."

Chrom, who had confirmed that Stahl and Lon'qu were coming as well, got the attention of the group,"Well then? Is everyone ready to go? It's a walk to Plegia Academy."

"I can drive," Stahl offered," I know Sully can too, just in case."

"Damn right, I can."

The blue haired boy nodded," Good, then let's-"

"Captain!" Everyone turned to see Ricken, holding his packed clarinet case," I'm all packed up! When do we leave?"

Chrom looked dumbstruck," Ricken? How did you...No, you're not coming. You're not old enough for this mission."

The auburn haired boy deflated," But, Captain! Nowi didn't come after school, so I want to use this opportunity to help! You know I can handle myself!"

He shook his head," I'd feel safer with you here, protecting the band room. All right? We're off, then. Be good."

Everyone except Robin left. The white haired girl crossed her arms huffily," I don't know what the hell is up with him today. I'm sorry you're on the receiving end of things."

Hold on, two influential band members were talking to him all in one day? Ricken couldn't believe it," It's fine. You should go catch up, though. From what I heard, you two were arguing a lot."

She tried to shrug it off, but a depressed look slipped it's way on her face," I'm sure it's nothing, nut you're right. I'll see you later, Ricken!" She waved goodbye and went to follow her fellow band members.

Ricken watched her leave, waiting until she was gone to vent,""Be good"? Gods, how old does he think I am?" Hold on. Maybe if he went and helped, Chrom would appreciate him more as a band member and Robin wouldn't be so stressed! Not only that, but he would be going on a rescue mission! Nowi would be jealous. Ricken nodded confidently,"...Well, I'll show him just how good I can be!"

* * *

**So, I've hinted at some of the future couples! Time for a summary, just in case; Emmeryn is the principal and is going to try and look for Robin's family, Cordelia finally saw Robin's true colors and befriended her, Ricken is going to try and help with Nowi's insomnia, Gaius got dragged into a bet he doesn't want to partake in (he's going to tell his friends that he's making progress while in all honesty, he's going to avoid Sumia at all costs), Maribelle was kidnapped by Plegian band members and some of the Shepards are going to fetch her, Chrom is being temperamental for some reason, no adults no about the meeting they're about to have, Virion flirted with Sully, and finally, Ricken is going after them. I like how Robin can support with everyone in the game, so I'm going to try and translate that into this story and have her build relationships with most of the Shepards (such as seen with Cordelia and briefly Ricken in this chapter). I know I probably didn't clarify this very well, but Philia is the vice principal. Sorry for throwing that in there without much of a warning. That, and even though they don't have supports together, Stahl and Chrom are friends. Okay, review time!  
**

**myra-is-a-tactictian:**** Does your friend play the oboe and/or flute like Markel as well? If so, that would be even more ironic! ****  
**

**Hey guys, comment either;**

**1: What character is your favorite so far?**

**or**

**2: What character would you like to see more of/at all in the future?**

**If you comment below, I will definitely answer and try and put more of those characters in the story! Thank you for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	7. Chapter 7 The Principal and the Plegian

**Heya guys!**

**The story is going back to the Fire Emblem Awakening Plot in this story, with a little bit of fluff at the end! I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

On the outside, Robin was acting cool and collected, despite the fact that her co-drum major was currently ignoring her and that her friends were uneasy about the entire endeavor.

On the inside, she felt like puking. For the first time since she remembered her name, Robin's brain began to feel fuzzy with unfamiliar hintings at memories. The drive to Plegia Academy wasn't long, but the entire trip in left her with an oddly itchy feel picking it's way at her brain.

She shuddered, praying that the people who kidnapped Maribelle weren't friends from her past. She liked to think that she was the same person that she was now, but no matter how hard she tried, Robin couldn't prove it. Then again, there was the question of how she lost her memories in the first place, and why it was connected with her fading bruises.

To make matters worst, she couldn't talk to it with anyone. The only people she was close to in the group was Sumia, Lissa, and Chrom, and one of the three was currently pretending she didn't exist. She could discuss the odd feelings of remembering something to the two girls, but she couldn't go into detail with it because they didn't know that she was hurt before she lost her memories.

To top it all off, Robin had taken leadership and was now leading a group of eight people to try and retrieve their fellow band members without a single hit to the other side. It did help that she knew very little about Gangrel, because that meant she had an impartial opinion towards him and would be more willing to make a deal. What didn't help was that she had no idea who he was and what his motives were.

Gah, why did life have to be so complicated?

While Chrom, Lissa, Sumia, and Kellam, who decided to tag along last minute, rode in Stahl's car, Robin and Lon'qu rode with Sully. The redhead had her headphones in while she drive, obviously trying to tune out whatever boring conversation the newbies would have with each other. Ironically, though, the two of them had opted to focus all of their energy on watching the scenery pass by.

The group finally reached their destination; the abandoned obstacle course the Plegia Academy tried to cover up. Robin had heard someone briefly talk about how the school used to be a military school, but she didn't believe it until now. The entire course was surrounded with a tall fence, save a small hole on the wall facing away from the main building. There was a large wall with a balcony on top to over see everything in the far corner. Nearby it was a large pile of mud that had formed into more of a swamp over the years. A threatening floor of barbed wire stuck out near it with rusted wire and spikes. Everything else was covered by the knee-length grass.

At the top of the fort was a boy with unruly red hair and unbelievably tan skin. Next to him stood a girl, probably a year younger than him, dressed in scandalous black clothing with white hair. There were signs of other Plegian students hiding in the tall grass, but no hint at where Maribelle could be. It unnerved Robin greatly.

The boy automatically recognized Chrom and smirked," Well look who it is; Prince Chrom in all of his elegance."

Said boy snarled," I'm not hear to play, Gangrel. Where's Maribelle?"

"Ooh, someone's frisky," The redhead, presumably Gangrel, responded. His eyes flickered over to Robin," Whose this?"

This was it; this was the moment where Robin would try her very best to solve the problem with little to no conflict. She took a deep breath and stepped forward," I'm Robin Doe, the new co-drum major of Ylisse High. I assume your name is Gangrel, but who is your friend?"

The girl leered," You may call me Aversa."

There it was again; the spike of the possibility of remembering something, but it was gone as soon as it came. Robin swore under her breath and unconsciously rubbed her head, trying to coax the thought back. Gangrel rose his eyebrow with an overly pleased grin on his face," What was that, darling? I couldn't hear you."

Realizing her actions, Robin straightened back up," Nothing important-"

"It was obviously important enough for you to express yourself upon," Aversa joined in, enjoyed the game as much as her partner.

She didn't like the direction this conversation was headed; Robin needed to get back on track so that they could leave as soon as possible," Is Maribelle unharmed?" She asked, trying to hide the shakiness in her voice.

Thankfully, Gangrel didn't notice her tone and nonchalantly began to brush off something on his shoulder," Who? Oh yes, that little blonde brat," He snapped his fingers, and a huge figure stepped out from behind the fort, holding a familiar blonde piccoloist.

Maribelle tried to shimmy her way out of the brute's grasp," Unhand me, you gutter-born troglodyte!"

Lissa gasped," Maribelle!"

"Lissa? Darling, is that you?" The girl frantically scanned the area until her eyes fell on her fellow Shepards. Robin could see her shoulders slump in relief from there.

Aversa rolled her eyes at the exchange," This girl intruded into Plegia Academy without our consent. And what's more... She wounded the brave Plegian students who sought only to escort her safely home."

"LIES! You speak nothing but lies, hag!" Maribelle spat," Did they not teach the meaning of the word "truth" in wretched-crone school?!"

Aversa tutted," ...You see? No manners at all. Such a nasty little bird simply had to be caged."

Robin didn't like the sound of that at all," You need to return her to us-"

"We don't need to do anything," Gangrel replied smoothly," After all, she invaded our school. You're lucky we didn't call the police-"

"That's because it is a faulty reason for arrest!" Robin cried," Just tell us what you want, because it's obvious you won't tell us the truth."

The red-haired drum major tilted his head cockily," I'm more interested to see what you want, dear Robin."

"What? Why would you ask something like that?"

"You come here, claiming to fight for Ylisse, yet you're wearing a vintage Plegian Academy sweatshirt," He answered cooly," Why is that?"

Robin's heart stopped; her sweatshirt was Plegian. Raimi was right. She could feel the Shepards staring holes into the back of her head, desperately waiting for an explanation of any kind to reassure them. The white haired girl, on the other hand, was terrified. There was now a large possibility that she attended Plegia Academy, but that also meant that there was a high probability that someone from the area had also been the one to attack her and wipe her memories. What if they were on the opposite side, waiting to finish the job? What if this wasn't a lure for the Shepard, but a lure for her instead? Even though the hot summer sun pounded on the back of her sweatshirt, Robin shook like she was in the middle of a blizzard.

She was yanked out of her thoughts when someone set a comforting hand on her shoulder," It's alright, Robin," A familiar voice cooed.

The drum major flipped around, both shocked and mortified," E-Emmeryn?"

The blonde woman nodded warmly," I've come to settle this-"

"-Do you think I'm from Plegia?" Robin blurted, trying very hard to conceal her worries.

The principal's eyes widened slightly," I cannot say I know the answer to that," She changed her tone to a whisper," But I do know that you're scared of the answer for some reason. Why?"

The girl anxiously turned to Frederick, who had come in company of Emmeryn and was now talking to Gangrel, and shook her head," I don't want to talk about it."

Emmeryn only nodded," That's alright. Now, while I do appreciate your approach on the situation, I believe that it is my turn to retrieve my student," She patted the girl's shoulder supportively before stepping in place by Frederick," Mr. Trikker, I believe?"

Gangrel opened his mouth in mock awe," What's this, then? The principal herself, in all her radiance? I fear I must shield my eyes!" He cried as he over-dramatically pretended to block his sight.

"I've come for the truth of this unfortunate incident between us," She replied seriously, unwilling to take part in any of his games.

"If I may speak the truth," Aversa started," That blonde twit was found intruding on school property, so we captured her and contacted you instead of the police-"

"You lying buffoon!" Maribelle shrieked.

Gangrel snickered at her feeble attempt to escape," Such a violent temper speaks to her guilt. This will call for a weighty punishment. And if she were to later confess to being an Ylissean spy? My goodness! It would take an act of CONSIDERABLE good faith to repair our relations."

"I have done nothing wrong! It is they who should confess! They are the ones who invaded Ylisse High! They were trying to vandalize someone's car! When I attempted to intervene, they took me and dragged me into the car and to their school!"

The Plegian drum major rolled his eyes," That would only prove Ylisse has a problem with criminals—something I hear oft of late...I think it has something to do with burnt band music and drill," Gangrel grinned when he was Robin, Chrom, and Frederick tense up," But indeed, tonight I shall weep salty tears into my pillow for forfeited band season-"

"We haven't given up yet," Chrom yelled, unable to keep quiet any longer," Thanks to Robin, we have an entirely new season planned."

Robin's heart swelled when he acknowledged her for the first time in two hours," Save your tears for when you lose!" Although it was obvious her friend was still making an effort to ignore her, he couldn't keep the proud smirk off his face.

Emmeryn held her hand up to silence the two and pressed on," Mr. Trikker, I request that you release this woman at once. There is no need for hostages in terms of negotiation, especially while we're living in the 21st century."

"Without so much as an apology?" Gangrel spat," Why should I even bother with negotiation? I'm within my rights to have her head this instant and be home in time for supper."

Chrom clenched his fists," You black-hearted devil!"

"Control your dog, my dear, before he gets someone hurt," Gangrel demanded smugly. Emmeryn frowned at the comparison, but sent her brother a pleading look. The blue haired boy broke underneath her gaze and stepped back.

The redhead beamed like a child on Christmas morning," Now then, Your Graceliness. Perhaps we can arrange a trade? You give me the Fire Emblem, and I return Mari Contrary here in one piece."

A gasp rose from the Shepards, leaving Robin confused. What is the Fire Emblem? Emmeryn narrowed her eyebrows," You would ask for the Exalt Family's royal treasure? But why?"

Gangrel rubbed his hands together greedily," Because I know the legend! The Fire Emblem is the key to having defeating your main enemy. I have desired it for years. YEARS! ...Yet my birthday comes and goes each year, and nothing from my dear, rich friends. Heheh..."

"The Emblem's power is meant for a single purpose, Mr. Trikker: to save the city and its people at their hour of most desperate need. It is not meant to be used as some child's play toy or sold as a priceless jewel."

"What if I tell you I won't sell it? I have a noble wish that is much more important than saving this stupid city from a fake threat," Gangrel said through his unbearable smirk," I want what every Plegian wants—a grisly end for every last Exalt! What could be more noble than that?"

Emmeryn's eyes widened in horror, and she instinctively stepped in front of her siblings," What?"

Gangrel snorted at her sisterly act," Surely you have not forgotten what the father did to my parents and the families of many other Plegians? He named us heathens! His "crusade" across our city butchered countless people! He murdered my parents right in front of me, and tried to finish me off as well! Surely you remember that?!"

This time, the Shepards' attention was directed at either Chrom, Lissa, or Emmeryn. The sisters did their best to ignore it, but Chrom's focus was solely on one person; Robin. Unlike everyone else, her eyes were on the ground. The oldest Exalt frowned,"...I have never denied father's past wrongdoings," She started slowly," But I have sworn to never repeat those mistakes. Our family is now one that embraces peace and sincerity towards others."

"Yours is now a haven of hypocrisy!" He barked," Now give me the Fire Emblem!"

Maribelle shook her head furiously," No, Your Grace! I'd sooner die than act as a bargaining chip for this filthy reprobate!"

Emmeryn's face fell," No, Maribelle..."

Gangrel groaned and leaned against the railing of her perch," Ugh... Taaaaaalk talk-talk-talk-talk. It's time to speak louder than words! This negotiation is over, Your Luminosity! I shall have the Emblem if I have to pry it from your shiny dead hands! Get one of them; I don't care which it is!"

His lackey's shared a knowing look before sprinting towards Emmeryn. Chrom growled and sucker punched the closest one, keeping them as far away from his older sister as he possibly could," Stay back! Or you'll all suffer the same fate!"

Gangrel chuckled," Now that's a declaration of war if I've ever heard one... A big, messy war that will bleed you Ylisseans dry. ATTACK!"

Aversa, unimpressed with her drum major's boring actions, left her post and approached Maribelle as the two band groups began to fight each other p," Poor, stupid girl... Are you really worth fighting a war over? Years from now, you'll be remembered only as she who destroyed Ylisse's band program."

For a split second, Maribelle dropped her proper attitude and started stammering. How could this happen? She was only trying to help," No...That's not...Oh, Lissa...Please, no..."

Before the evil teenager could do anything, something sharp hit the back of her head. Aversa yelped angrily and turned around, trying to figure out who the culprit behind her attack was. Suddenly, a large cracking sound could be heard from behind her," Maribelle! Go! You're free!"

Maribelle pulled away from the brute her savior had just released her from and gasped," RICKEN?! What are you doing here?"

Ricken, with his slingshot in hand, waved it off," Just run! We can talk about it later!"

Aversa glanced down at the freshman and snorted at the rescue attempt," Oh, is this your little boyfriend? Isn't he just precious."

"Don't talk down to me, witch!" Without warning, he pulled a marble from his pouch and shot a stone right between her eyes," Come on, Maribelle!"

The blonde sophomore nodded, ripping herself out of her shock," Right!"

The two youngsters sped off in the opposite direction so that they could meet back up with the Shepards, leaving a furious Aversa behind," Wretched whelp! I should... No. We have them outnumbered. The brats will be gone long before they can reach their comrades."

Robin was the first to notice that Maribelle had escaped, and she came to the conclusion that she would need some help. The white haired girl ignored Emmeryn's call after her and tore off to find the blonde girl. She made it halfway through the course before being tackled to the ground. She managed to roll out from under him, but when she tried to get back up, her foot caught itself in the barbed wire. She pulled to try and get it out, but it only caused more pain on her end," Well, well, well, if it isn't our little band music savior?"

It was the same boy from the first day she woke up. The same one who had burned the band music, kicked her, and ran away without any explanation on who she might be. Robin narrowed her eyes at him," How's your nose doing?"

He shrugged," The same as yours will in about a week or so," Robin didn't even have time to blink before the boy kicked her nose, sending a shock of pain through her nerves. Her back hit the ground roughly, thankfully not landing in the barbed wire with her leg. She hissed, using her hands to apply pressure to her nose instead of trying to shimmy her foot out," Bastard."

The clicked his his tongue in disapproval," Now, now, there is no need who use such unladylike words-"

Before he could finish, someone rammed into him and knocked him onto the ground," Don't talk to her like that!"

Relief flooded through her entire body," Chrom?"

The blue haired boy seemed to have knocked out her opponent by tackling him, so he turned his attention to Robin," What the heck were you thinking, coming out here to fight by yourself?!"

She shrank," I don't-I was only trying to help," Robin whimpered and tried to pull her leg out," My foot's stuck."

Chrom's temper was automatically replaced by concern as he frantically began to fiddle with the barbed wire," It's a good thing I came when I did, then. Are you badly hurt?" She shook her head," Oh, thank the gods," He gently pulled her foot out and began applying pressure to the bleeding wounds," Can you walk?"

Robin nodded meekly and tried to get back onto her feet, leaning heavily on Chrom's shoulder. When she realized that putting pressure on her leg would only make things worse, she turned bright red and looked at the ground," Uh, can I...Uh...lean on you?"

He softened up and nodded, wrapping one of his arms around her lower back. He scanned the area until his eyes fell on someone in all pink in the distance," Maribelle!"

The blonde took notice immediately and made her way over," Chrom! Robin! What happened?"

"You need to help her," He pleaded," I would if I could, but the most help I'll be is in the fight. Please keep each other safe," With that, he situated them in a clump where the grass was taller than usual and took off back into the battle.

Maribelle pulled a first aid kit from her pocket and set to work," This is all my fault," She murmured softly.

Robin shook her head furiously," No, it's not! You were just caught in the crossfire."

"You cannot say that, especially because you were hurt on my behalf," The blonde snapped, her eyes already glossy with unshed tears. She angrily wiped her eyes and began to wrap Robin's ankle," L-Lissa is safe, right?"

The last time she saw the youngest Exalt, she was waiting in the back with Frederick protecting her," Yes, she's fine," This only seemed to help calm the sophomore slightly, so Robin pressed on," I'm glad you're safe."

Maribelle blinked in surprise," What? Why?"

Robin smiled gently," I know I haven't known either you or Lissa very long, but for some reason, she's like a younger sister to me. I appreciate that you look out for her," She paused," I know you're not especially fond of me in return, but it's a relief just the same."

A flustered expression creeped it's way onto Maribelle's face," Oh, it's not a question of fondness. I am simply protective of Lissa, as you've said. My treasure is very sensitive, and... Wait. Am I really justifying myself to you? Gods...," She cringed, but caught herself while doing so a planted a more pleasant look on," Yes, well, I do...apologize for being curt. And... And... And you have my thanks for your part in the rescue. There, I said it!" She nodded curtly," Oh, and I don't believe what Gangrel, says about you being Plegian. There is no way you could obtain such an old thing currently without inheriting it from one of your parents."

Robin blinked in surprise, trying not to wince as Maribelle rubbed some sort of cream on her swelling nose," Really? Well, that's a relief. I'm curious about how you know the origins of my sweatshirt, though? Did you have earlier suspicions?"

"Yes. I had hoped to learn more about you," Maribelle's stated.

"Me? Why me? I'm not that interesting, you know."

The blonde snorted uncharacteristically," Can you fault me for being curious about an amnesiac with a genius for strategy? You've also earned quite a bit of trust from my dear friend Lissa. It's only natural that I'd want to learn more about the stranger in our midst," She turned bashful again," I suppose you might simply say that I hoped we could become...friends. Unless you object, of course."

Robin scrunched her face in confusion," No, I don't object. But...weren't we already friends?"

The sophomore lit up like a star," Oh, I'm pleased to hear you say that, Robin! Now we can have sleepovers and paint each others nails-" She coughed awkwardly," Ah, don't mind me. I'm not used to having friends."

Robin giggled," Heh! You really can be sweet sometimes, Maribelle. I'd be happy to hang out with you! But, you did say you were curious about me, so ask away. If I know the answer, I'm happy to tell it."

"Really?"

"It's not like we can do much else during this time."

Maribelle shook her head in agreement and clapped her hands together," Oh, lovely! That's very kind. Well, then... Tell me about the quaint customs of the unwashed masses from whence you came? I'm especially interested in this "slang" of which you brutes seem so fond..."

Robin frowned,"...Ah..."

Ricken popped his head in before the conversation could go downhill," Hey guys, the Plegians retreated! Miss Exalt said that we should leave too."

The girls nodded and got to their feet. Thanks to Maribelle, Robin could walk without needing assistance from anyone and only a slightly limp. The Shepards had regrouped back by Sully and Stahl's cars, all exhausted from the experience. Lissa and Maribelle immediately jumped onto each other, and Sumia had surprised Robin by hugging her tightly as well," I was so worried! Don't do something like that ever again!"

The white haired girl chuckled," Hah, I don't think I want to. I mean, look where it got me."

"Ouch," Sumia winced," Does it hurt?"

"Not as badly, anymore."

Chrom, who had been eavesdropping on the girls' conversation, sighed in relief and turned to Emmeryn," Forgive me, Emm. I made a stupid decision, and now we have some weird sort of band war going on."

His older sister smiled supportively, not wishing to let her sibling take the blame," It's all right, Chrom. Gangrel is the one at fault here. You were only protecting me."

Frederick, however, crossed his arms in disappointment," Next time something as drastic as this happens, I suggest you tell one of us. Maribelle could've been seriously hurt if you hadn't threaded lightly. We wouldn't have come if Ricken didn't leave a note for Nowi, telling her where he was going. We put together the pieces and came to assist."

As much as Chrom wanted to be angry at Ricken, he couldn't bring himself to. He waved goodbye to his close friends before making his way to the freshman," You didn't listen to me-"

Ricken winced," Uh, I'm sorry, but-"

"You didn't let me finish," Chrom interjected," You didn't listen, but because of that, you saved Maribelle. You did what you thought was right and ended up helping more than even I could," He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly," And for that, I would like to apologize. I'm sorry that I always look down on you, Ricken. You are very talented and strong, and I should treat you with more respect than I already do."

Ricken looked like he had just won the lottery," Really? Thanks Captain, it means a lot!" The drum major simply ruffled the boy's hair, but before he could leave, he spoke back up," Are you mad at Robin?"

Chrom froze," Uh, why would you say that?"

"She thinks you are."

Of course she thought that. She was always smarter than him, so it was no surprise that she knew. He wasn't mad at her anymore, of course, but it made him feel guilty that she knew he was. Chrom glanced over at Robin, who was still trapped in a hug by Sumia, and smiled. He couldn't stay mad at her for too long for some reason. She deserved to know why he was angry," Thanks, Ricken. I'm going to talk to her-"

"No you're not," Frederick intervened," We need to take you, Lissa, and Emmeryn home before Gangrel comes back."

Chrom frowned," But I-"

The band teacher ignored his protests and dragged the Exalt child to his car," Come on, we need to head home."

Robin watched curiously as Frederick hauled Chrom into his vehicle," What do you think is going on with them?"

Sumia shrugged," I dunno, but I think that our victory calls for a celebration! Let's call Cordelia and have a girls night! I'm excited just thinking about it! Come on!"

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Although he didn't to show it, Lon'qu was exhausted. When Chief Basilio had suggested that he joined the band, he hadn't expected a kidnapping on the first day of school. He was conflicted in whether or not he should tell Basilio, because if the police got too involved...

He sighed and leaned his head in his hands as he rode the public bus to his apartment. As much as he hated to admit it, he actually liked being in Marching band. It was a relaxing change of pace from being a police apprentice, despite Nowi always pestering him to play house with her and Erick constantly dropping his sticks on purpose. Playing the snare drum helped him ease tension-

"E-Excuse me?" Lon'qu lazily rose his eyes, only to find himself facing a pink haired girl in a nothing but a leotard and tights on. She looked incredibly embarrassed and anxious," Uh, can I sit by you?"

What? A girl wearing skin tight clothing had the nerve to ask him if she could sit by him? Did she have any idea how much he was scar-how much he hated girls? He groaned and dropped his head back in his hands," No."

"W-What?" She stuttered," B-But I this bus is going downtown, and one of the d-dancers thought it would be funny to try and fl-flush my clothes," She looked to be on the brink of tears," I d-don't want to get r...r..."

Lon'qu sent her another bored look," And how do you know I'm not going to hurt you?"

The pink haired girl ribbed her arm," Uh, we're in band together. I'm the colorguard-ist, Olivia-"

"ARE YA' GONNA SIT DOWN OR WHAT?" The bus driver boomed, causing the dancer to squeak. She looked so pitiful, it was humiliating. With a grumble, Lon'qu scooted as close to the window as possible, discretely allowing her to sit next to him. Olivia, torn between making him upset and worrying about her safety, didn't get the choice to choose, because the bus jolted forward. She helped as she fell down onto the seat and Lon'qu's lap.

The apprentice cop's eyes widened in mortification," Get off, woman!"

The pink haired girl sat up as quickly as possible and hugged her knees to her chest, shaking from the shock she had just endured. The two of them were too shy to speak to each other, so most of the ride was spent in silence. It was only broken when curiosity got the better of Lon'qu," Did you get the wrong bus?"

"N-No," She answered meekly," I live over here."

"In the ghetto?" He dead-panned.

Olivia nodded shakily," Y-Yeah. You just don't see me ride the bus because I have dance practice."

That was a surprise; someone so reserved and flowery didn't look like she belonged on the bad side of town. It was especially shocking because she could afford dance lessons. Something didn't seem to add up. Before he could question her on it, she sprung to her feet," Th-This is my stop. Thank you for letting me sit by you."

He didn't like where this was going. A pretty girl in only a leotard was sure to at least get harassed in this area. What would Basilio do? Lon'qu knew and hated the answer, but got up and followed Olivia off the bus anyways," I'm walking you home."

She brightened in hope," Really? Are you sure? I d-don't want to inconv-"

"Just shut up and let me accompany you, woman."

Though his tone was sharp, Olivia could tell his intentions were good," Okay. Th-Thank you..."

"Lon'qu."

"Lon'qu," She repeated cheerily," It's nice to meet you."

It was the first time in a long time that she didn't stutter.

* * *

**So, we've got some backstory coming up in the next chapter involving a certain blue haired boy (wink wink). I also added Chrom making up with Ricken, because without the note, they may have been screwed. I had some Olivia and Lon'qu fluff in there as well, with Maribelle/Robin friendship developement! The next chapter won't go off plot like the last few chapters have, so be prepared for a new character and an old one that's making a reappearance! One more thing; if you want to review but don't want me to respond to it on my chapters, you can tell me. Okay, it's Review response time!**

**Myra-is-a-tactician: That's so weird! Still, your friend sounds cool! I'm in colorguard as well. :)**

**Alright, if I'm lucky, I'll be able to put one more chapter up this week before it goes back to week by week posts. Views are loved, Comments are adored, and Follows are treasured! Thanks for reading guys! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	8. Chapter 8 The Forseer

**I got the chapter up before the week ended! Yay! Fair warning, though; this is a freaking long chapter with a lot of different parts to it. Also, the section in all italics is a flashback. Alright, I don't want to give too much away, so please enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

"No, we are not watching _Dumbo_," Cordelia commanded. After being invited to her friends' apartment and hearing the story of what happened with Maribelle, the trio had agreed to settle down with fast-food and a movie.

Unfortunately for Sumia, the redhead had just shot down her favorite movie," Aww, come on! Why not?"

"You've seen it a thousand times; it's your "I'm sad" movie, and unless there's something you're not telling me, you're not sad," Cordelia responded," I do want to watch a Disney movie, though."

Sumia sighed and began shuffling through her collection," Oh alright. Ooh! Let's watch _Beauty and the Beast_! It's one of my favorites!"

"I'm up for that!" The cornetist agreed," What do you think, Robin?"

The white haired girl shrugged," I don't care; I don't think I've seen any of these movies-"

"YOU'VE NEVER SEEN A DISNEY MOVIE?" Sumia shrieked, nearly dropped her pile in shock," Remind me to show you _Dumbo_ this weekend-"

"Stop it with _Dumbo_ already!" Her best friend groaned as she chomped on a French fry," Just put the movie in."

The brunette stuck out her lower lip," I'm going, I'm going-"

Before she could follow the girl's orders, someone knocked on the door. The three shared confused looks and eventually sent Robin to go answer it. Much to her surprise, it was Chrom," Oh, hey there-"

"I need to tell you something," He blurted nervously. Chrom's eyes flickered inside, where her two friends watched with puzzled expressions," In private."

That didn't sound good. What would Cordelia think? Was this a confession? No, he looked a different kind of nervous...if that made any sense. Robin sent a glance towards Sumia and Cordelia, both having very different expressions; the clarinetist was nodding furiously and making motions with her hands that waved the couple off, while Cordelia seemed to be forcing back tears. Robin swallowed a lump in her throat," You don't have to come if you don't want," Chrom mumbled, taking note of her hesitation," I didn't know I was interrupting something-"

"You're not interrupting anything," Sumia reassured," Just make sure you bring her back all safe and sound."

That was all the answer Chrom needed, because the next moment he was dragging Robin outside and tossing her a helmet. She stared at it in utter confusion," Wait, you have a motorcycle?"

"What? Of course not," He replied shakily," I have a moped."

She snorted," That's awfully girly of you."

"Really?" Chrom teased, easing up slightly as he did so," Tell me, what do you drive?"

Her cheeks flared red," Shut up."

"That's what I thought," He mounted the blue and black vehicle and situated his helmet on his head, patting the spot behind him," Let's go."

Robin gulped, absentmindedly fiddling with the helmet in her hands. She barely liked riding on Sumia's bike, so the thought of a horse-power version made her stomach clench up. Not to mention the fact that there was no extra spot for her to sit and-

Chrom rolled his eyes at her nerves and scooped her hand in his," Come on; I promise nothing bad will happen."

"But-"

"Trust me," He coaxed. She narrowed her eyes at him, trying to discover any trace of a lie or a threat. When she found none, she sighed and placed the helmet on her head. The blue haired boy grinned and tugged her down so that she was sitting right behind. As soon as she was settled, he situated her hands around his waist," Hold on, okay?"

She nodded and leaned her head onto his back, trying not to focus on the way his sweatshirt felt on her cheek as they took off," Where are we going?"

"Remember when you spent the night at my house the day after we found you? There's a forest in our backyard and -"

"You're bringing me to a forest late a night without telling anyone else where we're going?" Robin tutted," Sounds like you're trying to murder me."

"Maybe I am," He joked back, nudging her slightly with his elbow. Thankfully for her, Chrom's house wasn't very far from Sumia's, and in a matter of ten minutes, they had reached his house. The two of them hopped off of his moped, making sure that it was safely stored in the driveway before heading anywhere else. Once everything was in an orderly place, Chrom took her hand and lead her into the woods. There was a sense of urgency in his footsteps that practically dragged her along to keep up. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he pulled her up to a tree.

The tree itself seemed long dead, but had no intent on giving out just yet. It seemed that lightning had struck the tree in a place about a head taller than Robin, and it had tipped over onto another tree to form a bridge formation of sorts. While she was lost in her thoughts, she didn't even notice Chrom sneak up behind her and hoist her up onto the make-shift spot," Chrom!"

He chuckled and hauled himself up, situating himself so that he was sitting next to her," Don't yell so loud; This is my secret spot. Only Lissa knows about it."

She tried to be mad at him, but a warm feeling engulfed her. Out of all the people in the world, he had shown her his special spot," Oh. It's nice," Her eyes fell on a small river not very far away as it trickled down, eventually turning into a tiny waterfall," It's actually very pretty here."

"Mhm," He hummed proudly," No one other than us knows it exists."

Robin kicked her feet bashfully, trying to ignore how much she liked the word us. Having a best friend sure had it's benefits," So, you mentioned earlier that you wanted to talk about something?"

His face fell almost automatically," This Friday is our first football game, and it's against Plegia Academy...But there's something you should know first," She quirked an eyebrow at him, silently willing him to carry on,"..Not everything Gangrel said was a lie."

"What do you mean?" She asked softly.

Chrom turned his gaze onto the ground, unwilling to face her as he revealed his secret," As you probably know, there are hardly any Plegians that like the Exalt family, and it's all because of my dad," His dad? She hadn't considered the probability that he might be an orphan, but it would make sense seeing that he lived with Emmeryn," I...I used to look up to him. He was such a strong and successful individual, and I strived to be like him. It wasn't until Lissa's fifth birthday that I noticed that something was very wrong. W-We didn't celebrate it at all, something that I found confusing because I always had huge birthday parties," He ran a hand through his hair," She cried so much that day. All she wanted to was to talk to mom, but dad had specifically told us not to come downstairs or we'd get in trouble. We heard a lot of yelling and a few crashes, but that was the worst of it. The only difference was that mom was starting to act more timid than usual, and she seemed to be avoiding dad at any costs. Emmeryn was acting funny too, but she wouldn't tell any of us why."

Robin frowned," Did you ever figure out what happened?"

He nodded," Yeah. Mom had an affair with another man and Lissa was the product. Dad found out when her dad came and tried to give her a present for her fifth birthday. That poor man believed that my parents were divorced. He didn't know any better," Chrom started shaking," Emm said she watched the entire thing from the stairs. She said that dad threatened to kill Lissa if her dad didn't leave that instant and never come back. I-It wasn't Lissa's fault..."

"Chrom," She rubbed his arm gently, trying to calm him down," You don't have to finish if you don't want to."

He shook his head," No, you told me your secret, it's my turn to tell you mine. Anyways, a year passed without many incidents. I didn't notice it when I was seven, but mom would suddenly have bruises every now and then, and she wasn't allowed to leave the house without him. I was young at the time, so I didn't question it," The story seemed to be more painful the further he went into it, so Robin wrapped her arm around his and settled her head onto his shoulder as an attempt to comfort him. In return, he took her hand and gently squeezed it," Everything went wrong the day Emm left for college. She looked so much like m-mom and he was incredibly drunk, so he thought she was trying to escape," He tightened his grip on her hand," He grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked her back, yelling at her until she started crying. Before he could hurt her, mom stepped in and knocked him out with a frying pan. She t-told Emm to run, and promised that Lissa and I would be safe. As soon as Emm was gone, she brought me back to my room and told me that not matter what I heard, I was not allowed to leave through that door. She also said that if...if I heard a gunshot, I had to run. I-I asked her why someone would shoot them, and she just cried and made me promise to take good care of Lissa. M-Mom then brought Lissa in, and locked the door behind her," He choked," That was the last time I saw her."

Robin gasped," D-Did you run away?"

"Yeah."

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_Chrom didn't know what to do, so he just hugged Lissa as tightly as he could. What did Mom mean? Why would he hear a gunshot? Dad wasn't a bad person. He was just...just..._

_"Chrom?" His little sister yawned softly, sounding more like a kitten than a little girl," Are Mommy and Daddy fighting again?"_

_The nine year old nodded and kissed Lissa's head," Mommy-" He was interrupted by a terrifying, loud bang. Suddenly, everything seemed to freeze. Was that the gunshot his mom had warned him about? Why did he just hear it? Didn't she say to run if he heard it? What about her? What would happen to her if he left?_

_The tiny blonde in his arms whimpered at the sound, breaking Chrom from his thoughts," What was that?"_

_He tried to place on a brave face and scrambled over to his dresser, pulling out two sweatshirts. He placed one on himself before dragging the other one over his sister's head. Once she seemed like she would stay warm, he handed her one of his stuffed animals and made his way towards the window. He had seen a movie once about people who escaped through this way," Come on Lissa. We're going on...uh..." What was he supposed to say? He couldn't tell his sister that someone had just shot a gun,"...We're going on a vacation."_

_Lissa's eyes brightened. She had never been on a vacation before," Really?"_

_"Yeah," He answered, liking the sound of that," We have to play a game first, though. It's called the quiet game. You can't make a noise, or the stay-at-home goblins will make you go to bed."_

_She picked on the prospect of the game quickly and nodded her head, holding her petite finger over her lips and shushing him. Chrom's shoulders sagged in relief, and he motioned for his little sister to hop on his back. She bit back an excited squeal and climbed onboard, holding in her giggles as her older brother climbed out the window with her on his back. Once they were safely outside, he ran in the direction he hoped the school was in. Maybe his teachers would be able to help. They had helped him when his pet goldfish died._

_The air seemed to be ripped out of his lungs as the thought hit him. Daddy wouldn't kill mom...right? Of course not! Dads that bought ice cream for their sons were not murderers. Lissa nuzzled her head into her brother's shoulder and cupped her hands around his ear," Why are we leaving mommy behind?"_

_Thankfully it was dark, because he didn't want his baby sister to see him cry," We're gonna meet her there."_

_"Daddy too?"_

_He choked on a sob," Daddy too."_

_Meanwhile, 16 year old Frederick had just finished his shift as a boxing instructor for little kids, and was going to head home when his fellow base-clarinetist stopped him," Tharja? What are you doing here?"_

_"You still haven't told me who gave you that black eye," She pointed out, a warning tone evident in her voice," I've told you that fights were stupid and irresponsible."_

_He sighed, both touched and frightened at his friend's lecture," I know you have. I didn't mean to upset you."_

_"Then why did you get in a fight?"_

_"I don't want to talk about it," Frederick brushed off," I'm going to head home, but I look forward to seeing you in band tomorrow," He began to make his way back, but the girl began to follow him. It wasn't until they were a block away that he turned around and questioned her," Isn't your house in the other direction?"_

_"Why did you get in a fight?!" She demanded._

_"Tharja-"_

_"Why. Did. You. Get. In. A. Fight?!"_

_"I don't-"_

_"Just tell me!"_

_"It was to protect you, dammit!" He yelled, but he softened when he saw his companion flinch," There were some stupid seniors who thought it would be funny to mess with you, so I put a stop to it."_

_"But you're only a sophomore-"_

_"It doesn't matter if it means you're safe," He answered solidly," My safety comes as a mere second to yours."_

_Her eyes widened in pure shock," I-I can take care of myself, Frederick."_

_"That doesn't mean I can't protect you too-mmph?!" He was cut off by his friend roughly grabbing his collar and pulling him down to smash her lips onto his. It took him a full five seconds to realize that the girl he thought hated him was now kissing him, and another 10 seconds to conclude that he should kiss her back. Frederick possessively wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her even closer than before, smirking at the fact that he had to bend down a little bit so they could be at the same height. She responded by moving her hands from his collar to his hair. Eventually, she pulled apart for air. Much to his pleasure, her face was bright red and her bangs were sticking up at odd angles," I thought you couldn't stand me."_

_"I can't."_

_"You're blushing."_

_Tharja's eyes widened in mortification and she moved her hands to touch her burning cheeks. She squeezed her eyes shut," I...I can't stand you, but it's for a different reason than what you think."_

_Shy Tharja was surprisingly cute. The boy smiled coyly, using one of his hands to tilt her chin up," Is that so? How fascinating. And here I thought I was pining after a girl who would never return my feelings."_

_Her eyes flew open,"...Are you mad?! Only an idiot would want to be with me!"_

_Frederick went back to hugging her around the waist," If I were a poet, I could use sweet words to explain how my love came to be... But alas, I am not. I can only tell you what I know in my heart. I love you, Tharja. I want you at my side for all of my days," He finished confidently._

_Tharja's face turned even brighter than it was earlier," That's...really sweet, actually."_

_He felt own cheeks heat up at her approval," So, I guess this is where my question comes in. Tharja...will you be my girlfriend?"_

_She couldn't hide the smile creeping it's way onto her face," As long as you stop pestering me to practice my instrument every waking hour of the day, I'll date you."_

_Did she just accept? Frederick refrained from doing a happy dance on the spot," You will not regret it, I swear to you!" This time, he was the one to kiss her. It wasn't as long and passionate as the first time, but it was just as satisfying," My heart is yours, milady. I vow to defend you as companion and boyfriend until death should part us."_

_Her hands found their way back into his hair as she smirked," That sounds an awful lot like a proposal," She purred," It's a good thing that I'm used to you being a giant sap and I find it...kind of...cute...I guess...ugh-"_

_"Excuse me."_

_The newly formed couple broke apart, only to see a young blue haired boy carrying a tiny blonde. They watched in confusion as he nodded at the two in thanks before making his way past them. Tharja blinked," Aren't those Emmeryn's younger siblings?"_

_Frederick swore under his breath; the oldest Exalt sibling was a close friend of his, so he knew about the odd behavior her father had been showing. So when he saw two elementary schoolers all by themselves at 10:00 at night, he knew something was very wrong," Chrom?"_

_The boy paused and turned back around, confusion clouding his face," How do you know my name?"_

_"I'm a friend of Emmeryn's. My name is Frederick, and this is Tharja," He knelt down to the boy's eye level and looked at him in concern," What are you doing out here?"_

_Chrom whimpered," I-I know who you are. Emm likes to talk about you a lot, and she brought me to a football game to introduce us," He sniffled," I wish Emm was here now. Mommy said that I had to run if I heard a shot, and I heard a shot, so I ran. I d-don't know what to do!"_

_Gods, his mother had just been murdered. Did Emmeryn know? She couldn't have, or else she'd be with her siblings. Was Emmeryn still at their house? He hoped to Naga that she wasn't. Even if she was, she'd want him to take care of the two kids for her. He tried his best to hide his worries," I'm going to bring you home with me, okay? You look pretty tired, so I'm going to carry you."_

_Chrom shook his head and backed away slightly," No, I promised mommy I'd look after Lissa-"_

_"I can carry your sister," Tharja offered, secretly praying that her frightening appearance didn't scare him away. He looked from her to her boyfriend, then back to her. Finally, he nodded. She sighed in relief and lifted the small blonde off of his back and situating her on her hip._

_Despite being way too old to be carried, Chrom crawled in Frederick's arms and hugged him tightly, refusing to let go until they reached his apartment._

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Robin gawked at Chrom, a great sense of admiration overcoming her," You were only nine at the time, and yet you carried your sister around for hours until Frederick found you?"

"I couldn't let her go too," He choked," She was all I had left. I can't even imagine what Emm went through when dad called her and demanded to know where Lissa and I had went. A-Apparently he thought Lissa's dad had kidnapped us, so he traveled to Plegia and murdered him and his friends. Two of those people were Gangrel's parents. The police caught him the next day and gave him a life sentence."

"Hold on, your dad is still alive?"

Chrom sniffled and wrapped both arms around the girl, holding her much like he held Lissa that night all those years ago," W-When I first found you in that field, my initial thought was that my dad...that he..." He shook his head and nuzzled himself into her hair," He's locked up for good. The last time I saw him was when they let him go to mom's funeral. I don't want to see him ever again."

"I wouldn't either," She murmured comfortingly.

"That's why I got mad earlier," Chrom mumbled," It was all set up to be a trap. It was bad enough that I had to let Lissa go, but when you offered not only to go, but to try and negotiate," He hugged her closer," I didn't want you in their hit list, but now you are, and you almost got seriously hurt and-"

"I'm fine," She cooed," Lissa's fine. You're fine. Everything is going to be okay now."

He moved his face away from her hair so that he could place his chin on her head," I don't know what would've happened to us without Frederick and Emm. His family let us stay with them until Emm got her degree and a job, and then we moved back in with her. They both work so hard to make sure that Lissa and I are comfortable, and I want to do something for them someday. I look up to them more than anything else in the world."

"Well spoken, sir."

The two immediately pulled away from each other to face the intruder," I thought you said no one else knows about this spot."

Chrom narrowed his eyes," No one does. Stay here," He hopped down and strained his eyes in the darkness to see who it was," Marth..."

The skinny boy nodded," Good evening to you."

"How did you find this place?"

Marth crossed his arms," I've been following you ever since you left her apartment."

Chrom automatically jumped to conclusions," What the hell were you doing there?!"

"Peace, I was only looking for you. My partner told me that she used to live there, so I went to investigate," Marth studied his surroundings with a content expression," I heard everything you told her. I didn't think it'd become so personal, and I apologize. Don't worry, secret is safe with me. I only came here to warn you."

Robin blinked," Warn us?"

"Miss Exalt's life is in danger," Marth stated.

"What, Emmeryn? That's absurd. She's only a high school principal, why would anyone want to kill her?" Chrom strained," It's not possible."

Marth rung his hands together nervously,"What if... What if I told you I have seen the future? Would you believe me? A future where Emmeryn is killed. Tonight."

The blue haired boy snorted," Seen the future? Have you gone insane?"

"Yes, I expected you wouldn't believe me. So allow me to prove it," Much to Robin's horror, Marth pulled out a knife. Chrom's eyes bulged out of his head, and he instinctively pulled a pocket knife out as well," I'm about to save your life," The boy turned around," ...From him."

Suddenly, a man dressed entirely in black sprang from the bushes, making a motion to stab Marth. The boy sprung into the air and narrowly avoided the attack, using the hilt of his knife to knock out the assassin," I trust this proof will suffice?"

Chrom looked like someone had just slapped him in the face," ...Yeah."

Before Marth could further explain himself, another predator sped from the bushes, catching him off guard. Marth gasped and slipped on the knife that the first assassin dropped, tripping backwards just in time to miss his attack. Unfortunately, the knife managed to swipe of his sunglasses, which loosened his surprisingly long hair. Chrom dove into action, using the same tactic as Marth to take care of the second enemy. Once he was unconscious, Chrom flipped around," Wait, you're-You're a woman?!"

Marth unconsciously reached to readjust her glasses, only to realize that they weren't there anymore. She sighed and responded cooly," And quite the actress, too. Honestly, I'm surprised you didn't figure it out until just now."

Before Chrom could further question her, an gun sounded in the distance. Both Chrom and Marth turned a ghostly white," Oh no, we have to go NOW!"

The blue haired boy nodded and turned to his friend, who was still stuck in the tree," Robin, jump! I'll catch you!"

She shook her head furiously," I can't-"

"ROBIN JUMP!"

The white haired girl squeaked and pushed herself off the limb, overly grateful that Chrom caught her like he promised. As soon as she was back on her feet, he grabbed her hand and took off after Marth. On any other day, it would've been a struggle to keep up with the athlete, but she was running on pure adrenaline right now," Where's Emmeryn? If we find her, we have a better chance of protecting her."

"She should be in her room, sleeping," Chrom replied as the trio burst out of the forest and into the house. Luckily, the league of assassins hadn't reached the house yet, so they had plenty of time to lock all the doors and windows. Unlike what the drum major had thought, both Exalt girls were wide awaken and shaken up by the sound of the gun. Once she made sure they were safe, a Robin called the police.

They nearly tackled Chrom to the ground when he entered," Chrom! Where have you been?" Emmeryn fussed," Please tell me you didn't go after Gangrel-"

"I didn't," He assured, patting his older sister's head," I was just acting rude towards Robin earlier, so I apologized to her-"

"Marth is a girl?!" Lissa squeaked, blush spreading over her cheeks like wildfire," Oh my gods! Uh...I haven't seen you in ages! Hey, have you seen Henry? I didn't know if you lived in Rosanne as well-not that I know if he lives in Rosanne-"

Chrom thwacked his little sister's forehead to quiet her," Emm, I know this is crazy, but Marth can see into the future."

"That is crazy," She replied with a disturbed expression," Chrom, you'd tell me if you wanted to try drugs and such-"

"I'm not on drugs, Emm, just hear me out-"

"He's telling the truth," Marth reenforced," I come from a future where you die tonight."

Emmeryn frowned slightly," Is it wise to believe her?"

Chrom crossed his arms confidently," Marth has earned our trust. She enjoys her secrets, I know...Like her gender, for one. But she's also saved our lives. Twice. And that's enough for me."

Marth's eyes glossed over," Chrom... Thank you."

The blonde woman watched the exchange curiously," I see..." Before Emmeryn could question them further, the sound of broken glass from the front of the house interrupted them. She automatically pushed her siblings towards the door and pulled an old sword off the mantle above the fireplace," Chrom! Take Lissa and flee while you still have time!"

Chrom's heart dropped in his stomach; that sounded far too much like what his mother told him before she died," No! We're not leaving you! If we run, we run together!"

Robin nodded," I just finished calling the police, and they're on the way. I have a plan that's going to stall them for the time being, but you three need to hide. If they're after you, they won't hesitate to kill you."

"You make it sound like you want us to leave you behind," Chrom growled, not liking where the plan was going at all.

"I'll go with her," Marth stated," She'll be safer if she's with me."

Despite the fact that Robin knew little to nothing about Marth, her words made her feel calmer," We'll be fine. We just have to survive for five minutes."

Chrom looked her dead in the eye," Promise me you'll come back alive and I'll go."

"I-"

"Please," His tone had a hint of pleading in it that broke her heart.

Robin took a deep breath and nodded," Yes, I promise. Now go!"

The two younger Exalt siblings hugged her before exiting through the backdoor and leaving to hide in some unknown place. Robin sighed shakily and turned to Marth, who seemed to be in awe," I was wrong when I said you were a coward."

"To tell you the truth, I'm terrified right now," She laughed, trying to keep the quaking out of her voice," What are you, sixteen?"

Marth smiled," Yeah, I guess I am."

"Alright. I'm probably seventeen or eighteen, so that means that if there's any sign of trouble,I'm sending you back to hide with the others."

Her smile dropped automatically," No."

"You've got an entire life to live-"

"My word is final."

Without warning, a tan girl with dark brown hair climbed through the window while muttering to herself," I knew there was wisdom in slipping in with those rogues. Look how these man-spawn claw at the front door like savages! I will repay my warren's debt and then wash my hands of their race-"

Robin, not liking the way this girl talked, took a step away," Another assassin?"

Marth shook her hands wildly," No! Panne is not your enemy."

"You know her?"

The blue haired girl rubbed her arm," I know...of her. And I knew she would come here tonight."

The girl, Panne, rose her eyebrow skeptically," Quite the prophet, aren't you?"

"I-" Suddenly, the front door caved in, and a group of thugs scrambled into the house. The three girls each picked up whatever makeshift weapon they could and prepared themselves for battle.

"Hmph! Two assassins and the little princeling was not even wounded?" Out of everyone in the entire world, the mobster fro, Robin's nightmare stepped into the living room. His eyes fell on Marth and Panne, causing an annoyed look to play on his face,"...Wait. Some of these actors do not belong on this stage..." He turned his focus to Robin, who had taken a baseball bat from a nearby pile and was waving it menacingly, trying extremely hard to hide her fear," Ho ho! Can it be?! After years of searching... Tonight, fate truly piles the gifts at my feet!"

"Years of searching?" Robin gasped," Do you know who I am?!"

"Do you not?" An almost demonic smirk crept onto his face," I'd be more than happy to-"

"POLICE!" Basilio cried from the front of the house," PUT YOUR HANDS UP WHERE I CAN SEE THEM!"

While the nightmare man turned at the distraction, Robin could feel someone grab her wrist and yank her and others outside. Once her vision cleared, she could see that it was Lon'qu. He scowled at her," I was hoping that Basilio was joking when he said it was you that called the police station this late at night. Not to mention the fact that you are now cooperating with Marth, the ma-" He paused, squinted, then cringed," Woman. I knew you were a woman."

Marth looked to the ground guiltily," Sorry about that."

Lon'qu pinched the bridge of his nose, obviously annoyed," Gah, why do I keep having to converse with women today? First a rescue mission, then a girl in only a leotard," He shuddered," And now this."

Panne narrowed her eyes," Is that supposed to be an insult?"

He grumbled something under his breath before regaining his posture," Don't worry, everything is under-" Before he could finish, a gunshot rang through the air," Dammit. Stay here, I'm going in," Lon'qu didn't wait for their approval as he pulled a gun out of his jacket and re-entered the house.

Robin frowned," Wait-"

She made a move to go after him, but someone strapped her in a hug before she could even think about it," Thank the gods you're safe!" Chrom cried," We heard the gunshot and came out from our treehouse to find you-"

"Out of all the places in the world, you hid in a treehouse?!" The six turned around to see an exhausted looking Frederick holding Noire," Not only that, but you," He pointed to Robin, who was still nestled in her friend's arms," thought it would be a good idea to not go with them? Do you have any idea how worried I was? Especially since Tharja is at a physiology convention and can't stay at home to take care of Noire so I had to bring my eleven month old child-"

Emmeryn placed a hand on her friend's back," It's alright, Frederick. All that matters is that no one is harmed. It is you three I have to thank; Robin for her bravery and quick thinking, Panne-"

"You know who Panne is?" Robin inquired.

"Of course!" Lissa answered," She's our next door neighbor!"

Emmeryn nodded," Panne, thank you for checking in on us. Finally, I'd like to thank Chrom, for warning us ahead of time. There is no need to feel guilt for protecting us."

"It is I who should be apologizing," Basilio commented from the door," I failed in my duty—they should have never made it into Ylisse in the first place. We tried to collect them peacefully, but one of them pulled out a gun and we didn't have a choice. That was the reason you heard the shot," He grimaced," If only we could've done something to stop this."

Chrom, who managed to capture both Lissa and Robin in his arms, shrugged," Peace, Chief. You couldn't have known what was coming. Only Marth could..."

Frederick's jaw dropped,"...Marth?

The blue haired boy remained unfazed by his teacher's shock and went on," Yes, I would speak more with... Um... Robin, where's Marth?"

The white haired girl scanned the area nervously," Hmm... An excellent question. She was here a moment ago, which means that she is hopefully unharmed..."

Chrom patted the girls' heads and released them," I'm going to go find her before she leaves unannounced again," Fortunately for him, she didn't get very far. In fact, he found her taking refuge in his secret spot," Going somewhere? You have a bad habit of leaving without saying good-bye, you know."

Marth clutched her heart, shocked that someone had found her," Yes, I'm afraid I have a few bad habits."

He chuckled and sat himself next to her," Good ones as well—you saved my life as well as both of my sisters. Is there a way I can repay you? Some favor I can grant?"

"Hearing you offer is reward enough," She assured.

"But there must be something..."

Marth stopped him by holding up her hand," I already have what I came for: history has been rewritten."

Although part of him didn't want to know, he felt that he had to ask," And what future averted?"

"...After the Emmeryn's untimely assassination, the Fire Emblem would be stolen. This, in turn, would lead to a great war of justice against crime, and will lead to the falling of Ylisse itself...But I'm sure that sounds like madness to you," She babbled.

Chrom shook his head seriously,"...Strangely, no. It doesn't. Somehow I know I can trust you. And I hope someday to repay your favors."

Marth sent him a warm grin and got to her feet, brushing herself off as she did so," Perhaps one day you shall. Until then...," She bid him farewell and disappeared into the night, leaving Chrom to his thoughts.

A war of crime? Could that mean... Chrom gasped," The Grimleal are back."

* * *

**Yay, Panne is now in the story! If you noticed, I also changed Noire's age because her birthday is in early October...oops. I also apologize if this chapter was rushed; there was a lot I had to fit into it. I had a lot of Chrobin fluff in it, some bff and brotherly love moments in there as well (Family fluff is the best). It is also surprisingly easy and fun to write Freddy and Tharja as a couple as well, because they're polar opposites and play well off of each other. I didn't kill of Chrom's dad in this, because of certain reasons...bwahaha. I also apologize for the away I wrote young Chrom...he probably wouldn't be that mature at his age. Oh well. Anywho, the next chapter will probably pick up at the first football game of the season, and will have one of our favorite redhead's make an appearence! Stay tuned! Review time!**

**Amy47101:**** Yup! Freddy and Tharja are each other's spouses! I find that the three girls being friends and total opposites hilarious as well! Don't worry, I have plans for Henry to show up in the next chapter. I'm glad you're approving of most of my couples. Thank you so much for all the great feedback and I can't wait to hear more from you!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Hopefully the next one will be up sometime in the next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	9. Chapter 9 Go Rams!

**Heya guys! Okay, so I'll end up posting a chapter every weekend (if I'm lucky and not busy), so keep an eye out! I introduce another character in this chapter and bring one from an earlier one back! I hope you enjoy it!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem.**

* * *

There were several products that came from the experiences endured on the first day of school; Panne, who had stayed home that day with a bad headache, had decided to join band with her bass clarinet. After being reassured that nothing happened between Robin and Chrom, Cordelia went back to acting normal and pleaded her and Sumia to spend the night after the first football game.

Meanwhile, everyone was in a flutter making dinner plans for before the game. When the dismissal bell rang, practically everyone bolted out of the classroom. As usual, Robin was the odd one out for these traditions. Since she hadn't made any plans, she promised Frederick that she would organize some of the band uniforms.

Chrom, on the other hand, had somehow gotten roped into chaperoning Lissa and Maribelle to the mall. As soon as they arrived, the two blondes disappeared, leaving him to do his homework on one of the couches with a man yelling furiously at one the games on his phone. Needless to say, Chrom gave up five minutes into his studying and began to peruse the mall, more than surprised to see Gaius drooling in the candy shop," What are you doing here?"

The ginger didn't raise his eyes from the jar of candies he had been observing," I'm going to buy that. Duh."

"It's not good to eat candy before you play your instrument, especially when you have a reed."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's not like I actually know how to play the Saxophone anyways," Gaius finally turned to face him, sucking on the ever present lollypop in his mouth," So what exactly do you want?"

Chrom rose his eyebrow questioningly," Why do I have to want something to talk to you?"

He shrugged and twirled a piece of taffy between his fingers," It's weird to see you alone. For the past four years, I haven't once seen you without either your basketball posse or your fangirls," He paused and took a bite," Actually, I take that back."

"Oh? Well thanks-"

"This year you're all over Robin."

Chrom dead-panned," Really? You're going to be one of those people? We don't have feelings beyond mutual friendship. I can't love a girl I only met two weeks ago."

The ginger smirked," Of course you can. I can see it now; sometime in the future, you will be telling that girl that you have been smitten with her ever since the moment you laid eyes on her. Take my advice and ask her out before one of your cronies think it's cool to date the boss's friend."

"Why would anyone want to date Robin?"

Gaius nearly choked," What?! Are you serious right now? The chick is hot! Sure, she hides her figure with that stupid sweatshirt all the time-"

"She has her reasons," He defended.

"I'm sure she does, but I'm not the only one that would highly appreciate it if she-" The boy paused, his coy smile growing even larger," Oh man, I can already tell you're mad. Don't pop a vein over me, Blue."

Chrom let out a low growl," If you so much as look at Robin the wrong way-You know what? Nevermind. You're not worth it. Make sure to be at the game, or you'll be headed straight for community service hours."

Gaius watched as his drum major stormed out of the candy shop, leaving his grin to grow even larger," That kid will thank me some day."

"Yeah, they just need a little push to get together," His eyes widened in horror when he realized who had just snuck up on him. The ginger made an attempt to ignore her, but she continued on," You see, I used to have this huge crush on Chrom-"

"I don't care-"

"-but when I saw the chemistry that he and Robin had together, I just knew-hey!" Sumia stomped on front of him and placed her hands on her hips," I was just making conversation. No need to get so snippy with me."

He rolled his eyes an attempted to leave, but she blocked his exit," Move it, Stumbles."

"Stumbles?!" She squeaked," How rude! I'm sorry that I saw that we have a common goal-"

"Oh? And what would that be?"

She had gained his interest. Sumia folded her arms and smiled cheekily," We make Chrobin cannon!"

Gaius looked at her as if she had just spoken gibberish," What the hell is a Chrobin, and why would we shoot it out of a cannon?"

She tutted and linked her arm in his, much to his displeasure," I have a lot to teach you, my shipping apprentice."

"Hold on, first cannons, now ships? Are we going to play pirates or-Hey!"

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Maybe Gaius had a point.

Chrom had been set dead against feeling any sort of attraction towards his best friend on the way back to the school, but it was impossible not to when he finally found her.

His fellow drum major was currently curled up in a small pile of concert band uniforms. Robin was in a deep sleep, the only sign of her alive state being the steady rising of her chest. Her hair, while messy, somehow seemed to form a halo of sorts around her head, giving her an angelic glow. If her peaceful demeanor wasn't alluring enough, an odd habit she seemed to have picked up sold him; Robin very briefly scrunched up her nose and wiggled it, which was the most adorable thing he had ever seen in his entire life.

Seeming to notice she was being watched, Robin sleepily peeled her eyes open and squinted at the harsh florescent light," Gods, how long have I been napping?"

He shrugged and offered her his hand, which she gratefully took to help her get to her feet," I don't know, I just got back from the mall. Did you know that you wiggle your nose in your sleep?"

Robin's hand slipped away from his and unconsciously touched her nose," I do?"

"Yeah," He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly add added under his breath," It's actually pretty cute."

"What was that?"

"N-Nothing!"

Robin rose her eyebrows suspiciously, but wasn't given the chance to speak because Chrom had already bolted from the room. Did she honestly wiggle her nose in her sleep? Sumia had never commented on it. Then again, Sumia probably didn't watch her sleep.

She sighed and stretched her limbs, a mixture of nerves and excitement washing over her. Robin could already hear people starting to file into the band room, and they would be in need of a leader. She smoothed her frazzled hair, straightened her shoulders, and marched outside.

She had been expecting minor problems, seeing that it was the first time that they would actually perform their halftime show. Instead, she was bombarded with different problems; Erick accidentally broke one of his sticks, Ricken lost yet another box of reeds, Sumia tripped and got her white uniform pants all muddy, and the new kid, Gregor, had apparently started stealing snacks from the band stash.

Robin stumbled over to Frederick, who was holding Noire and intently watching his wife try and fix Olivia's baton," I think we're ready to march over to the field."

He scanned her quickly and stifled a laugh," You look exhausted. Hasn't Chrom been helping out?"

She nearly jumped when she felt said boy rest his arms on her shoulders and leaned against her," I've been helping just as much as she has!" The tired tone in his voice told them that Chrom was telling the truth," Seriously, Vaike tried to drag me into a competition again! He stalked me for a good half hour before giving up."

Tharja smacked her husband upside the head," Why didn't you help them?"

"Ow! I'm holding the baby-"

Noire mimicked her mother and swatted his chin," Bad Dada!"

He rolled his eyes fondly and hugged the tiny girl tightly," I'm not a bad person, I'm just using my resources so that I can spend more time with you."

"_Resources_?!" The drum majors cried.

Frederick cleared his throat awkwardly and checked his watch," We should gather everyone up; it's almost time to march to the field."

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Lissa could hardly sit still in her seat. Once the band had arrived at the football field and played the National Anthem and Ylisse fight song, they were seated in bleachers to do pep band pieces until half time. Chrom, Kellam, Stahl, and surprisingly Robin, were all enraptured by the game. The white haired girl even went so far as to start making up her own plays and yelling when their team did something stupid. Everyone made sure to cheer extra loud whenever Sully, Vaike, or Gregor did something substantial (even though they'd have to play something right after). Cordelia and Maribelle doubled as cheerleaders, so they were also on the sidelines and away from the band, but all five would return and shove their uniforms on so that they could march during halftime.

Emmeryn, who had made a tradition of coming to the first of every football game, was seated in the audience with Tharja, Noire, and Miriel. She made brief eye contact with her sister and gave her a thumbs up for good luck. It was, after all, her first year with a solo.

That's right; Lissa had a solo as a sophomore. A sophomore! It was in the second piece, _You Deserved More from me than a Sword and a World of Troubles,_ right after _ID Hope_. She felt sort of bad for Markel, who was a senior, but he assured her that he preferred Oboe and was glad that a more polished flute player would be doing the piece justice.

Frederick clapped his hands to get everyone's attention," We are almost done in the second quarter, so get ready to march on the field."

Those were the words Robin had been dreading. The unsettling thoughts of messing up the entire band kept replaying in her head over and over and over. Her stomach churned, and she unconsciously grabbed Chrom's sleeve like a small child," I...maybe you should be the only one to do it this time-"

"What?" He cried," Why?"

She shrugged ashamedly," I'll just end up doing something stupid, like ruining the show-" Much to her shock, he took her hands in his and bumped his forehead against hers. She was so surprised by the sudden closeness of him that she jolted away," What are you doing?!"

Chrom smirked," I'm going to calm your nerves. Trust me," She narrowed her eyes hesitantly, but allowed him to pull her closer again and place his forehead back on hers. For some reason, the contact sent butterflies pulsing through her stomach," Okay, listen to me; _you're_ the one who made up the drill, _you're_ the one who wouldn't stop listening to our three pieces for three days, and _you're_ the one who unconsciously practices conducting while we're in Politics. I have more faith in you than I have in myself, and if we put our strengths together, there is no way either of us will fail," He squeezed her hands gently," Now let's go kick some musical ass!"

She felt her nerves drain away and smiled," Thanks Chrom."

"My pleasure."

The two pulled apart and made their ways to the two podiums set up for them, poised to direct the first song," _And now it is time for the Ylissian Ram's favorite form of entertainment; The Shepard's halftime show!"_ The announcer boomed," _This year, they will be playing "ID Hope", "You Deserved More from me than a Sword and a World of Troubles", and their finale, "ID Return/ID Purpose". The band is lead by it's director, Mr. Frederick Warry, and it's two drum majors, Chrom Exalt and Robin Doe. This show will also feature solos by Mellophonist Cherche Wyvern, Trumpet player Sully Scarlet, and Flutist Lissa Exalt! The band is also guided by their colorguard captain, Olivia Plush, with her baton! Now please enjoy the show!"_

Chrom and Robin exchanged confident nods before raising their arms. Chrom stuck his whistle between his mouth and blew into it twice slowly to gain their attention before setting the tempo with four consecutive whistles after that. On the forth chirp, the two swung their arms down, cueing the band to start the first song.

Much like the announcer had said, Cherche had a solo very early on in the piece, and played it very clearly and precisely, followed shortly by Sully with hers. Everyone's feet moved at almost the exact same time, something Robin noted that they would have to work on later. Otherwise, everybody had perfected the "rock-and-roll" at every tune change in the song, making it look especially cool. Lissa's solo in the second song was practically flawless, but there seemed to be something missing in the piece that neither Chrom or her could pinpoint. Finally, the third song started with a percussion entry, eventually leading into the powerful final piece. Before she knew it, the band had finished their last note, and the crowd was applauding wildly," The Ylissian Shepards!" The announcer cheered.

Robin could barely contain her giddiness in as she lead the band off the field, only succumbing to it once Frederick informed them that, like usual, they had third quarter off. Once everyone began to break apart, Robin threw her arms around Chrom," We did it!"

He laughed," Of course we did! What did I tell you-NO!" He screamed, his attention turning back to the game," THAT'S NOT FAIR!"

Robin snorted and waved goodbye, nearly running into Olivia," Oh gods, I'm sorry!"

The pink haired girl's eyes widened in horror," U-Uh, it's fine. I was just g-going to...," Her eyes fell to the ground in shame," Can you come with me to the concession stand?"

"Sure."

"Really?!" Olivia blurted. Realizing her outburst, she slapped her hands over her mouth," Sor-"

Robin waved her hands frantically," No need to apologize! Come on, let's go get some food," She linked her arm into the color-guard-ist's and started to lead her in the direction of the stand," So..." Her eyes fell on a small pouch tied around the girl's waist," Um, so if you don't mind me asking, what's in the bag there?"

She bit her lip nervously," Hm? Bag? What bag? Ooooooh, THIS bag! Er, it's nothing really. Just a few coins..."

Thank gods, she finally had a conversation topic she could go off of," Keeping a secret stash, are you?"

Unfortunately, Robin got the wrong reaction from the girl," It's money I've been saving out of my wages, I'll have you know! Sheesh," The pinkette crossed her arms huffily," _Secret stash_ indeed. You make it sound so sinister."

The white haired girl cringed," I'm sorry. I certainly didn't mean to imply anything untoward. I'm just impressed is all. It takes real dedication to save up for something."

"Oh!" She smiled bashfully," Thank you, Robin. Such praise means quite a lot coming from you."

Robin blinked in confusion as the two got in line," It does? Huh. I've never thought of myself as anything spec-"

Before she could finish, Olivia's cellphone buzzed. The girl's smile disappeared, immediately replaced by a grimace," Oh dear, I've got to run. I'm supposed to make dinner tonight. You know what they say, right? A hungry mother is a big jerk!"

"Is that what they say? I had no idea," She was so deep in her train of thought that she barely realized her friend start to leave. The reason she noticed was because the small pouch had dropped from the girl's waist,"...Ah! Olivia, wait! You dropped your secret stash!"

Olivia's face turned bright red," Will you PLEASE stop calling it that?! You make it sound like I stole it or something. People will get suspicious!"

Robin frowned the the pink haired girl continued to leave," Well, whatever you want to call it, you're-hey, wait! Olivia-"

"Good evening, and welcome to _Annalise's Special Concession Stand_!" A redhead behind the counter chirped, dragging Robin's attention away from the other girl," My name is Annie! What would you like to order-"

"Annie!" A woman that looked remarkably similar to her called," I need you to make popcorn."

"Okay, mom!"

The woman turned towards the back of the stand," Anna! We have customers that need their orders taken!"

"I don't want to! I'm working on homework!"

"Anna Natalie Nettle-Anderson, you come here right now or I'm taking away your computer!"

A groan could be heard from the back, but Robin was more than surprised when Annie in different clothes and wearing a fake smile approached the counter," Good evening, and welcome-"

"Weren't you just here?"

The girl shook her head," No, that was my sister, Annie," She quirked an eyebrow," Haven't you heard of us? We're the quads of Ylisse high!"

Another version of Annie with a blue highlight in her hair shoved the girl Robin was talking to out of the way," If you're going to chat the entire time, then I guess I'll have to serve the customers."

"I was serving her, Annette! Ugh!" The girl tilted her head towards the other side of the counter, and the two made their way over," I guess I never got to introduce myself; my name is Anna, or also known as Tricky Anna."

"Tricky Anna?"

"Yeah," She chatted," Annette over there is Pretty Anna, Annie is Sporty Anna, my other sister, Annika, is Nerdy Anna, and my mother is Mama Anna. It helps people tell the difference between us," Anna propped her chin on her elbow and sighed," I hate working concessions. Sure, I like business and all, by my true expertise is in journalism and law. You see, I can't cook to save my life and my horrible family still expects me to work here!"

Honestly, Robin was having a hard time keeping up with the social girl," Uh...I'm sorry?"

"Really? Thanks! Oh, I've been going on about my problems and you haven't even expressed yours yet. What's your name and life story?"

"Don't trust her," Annette warned," Anna is only looking for a cover story."

"You don't know anything, Annette!"

Annie stepped inbetween the two and tried to calm the tension," Come on, guys. We can't fight in front of the customers; it's bad for business."

Anna rolled her eyes," Of course it is-"

"I hate to interrupt you," Robin said hesitantly," But third quarter ends in a few minutes, and I need to get back to the band-"

"Band?" Anna pondered," Hey, I know! Why don't you let me join the band?"

Her sisters glared at both her and Robin, waiting for the drum major to speak up," Uh, I don't know. It'd be pretty hard to teach you the entire show-"

"I'll learn, I promise!"

"Can you even play an instrument?" Annette sneered.

Annie, who was closer to Anna than the rest of her family, tapped her chin thoughtfully," She could be in color-guard."

"That's flag twirling, right?" Anna clapped her hands together," I'll learn how to do it, I swear! Just let me join your band-"

Robin tugged on her own sleeve," I don't know-"

"Give me the weekend, then!" Anna swore," I'll have the show memorized by then. You just need to give me the video of the show and I'll be in top shape by Monday!"

The white haired girl didn't have any time to think of a response, because she had a minute to get back to the group," Fine, but I have to go! Show me what you've learned on Monday morning!"

Anna pumped her fist into the air," Yes! I won't disappoint you!" She grabbed a candy bar and tossed it to Robin," Here, it's on me!"

The drum major beamed gratefully," Thanks!"

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"I know you."

Lissa paused her conversation with Maribelle and turned to see who was speaking to her. Her face lit up immediately when she saw a familiar white haired boy," Henry! I've been wondering what happened to you."

Maribelle's eyes widened; she had heard a lot about this Henry fellow from her best friend, but now that she saw him, an unsettling rush of nausea filled her," Lissa..."

"What?"

"He's Plegian."

Henry, oblivious to her fear, nodded," Yup! I play saxophone in the Plegian marching band! I didn't know you went to Ylisse! I figured you lived in Rosanne!"

Lissa giggled," Me too! How crazy is that? Oh, Maribelle, this is-"

"Henry, I know," She growled," When I was being held captive in Plegia, I heard all sorts of stories about you. A silver–haired youth with a knowledge of curses and an extraordinary gift for music. A man guarded by fierce crows so that very few had seen the true extent of his powers."

The boy let out a low whistle," Oh wow! Now that's a reputation! Yeah, crows always had a thing for me, I guess. Dunno why. I really like animals! Do you have any animals?"

The blonde in pink narrowed her eyes suspiciously, deciding automatically that she didn't trust this boy. Lissa, on the other hand, didn't care very much that he was from Plegia. After all, Tharja was, and she and Frederick were married and parents! Not to mention that she was pretty positive Robin had connections with the school, and Lissa was secretly hoping that the white haired girl would hit it off with her brother. The flutist shook her head," I used to own a fish, but Vaike ate it."

"Poor fishy! You want me to cast a death curse on him as revenge?"

Maribelle gasped," A curse on one of our fellow band members?! I understand that Vaike deserves it...Mmm… No. That could be problematic. Don't do it."

Henry shrugged cheerfully," Hee hee! Yeah, I guess. Too bad, though. See, 'cause I've got one move that makes blood come out your–"

"Thank you, I get the picture," She replied snippily," What's with the smiling, anyway? No one's going to trust you if you're grinning like the idiot."

This only caused his grin to grow," Hee hee! Smiling? This is how I always look."

Maribelle held up her hand to quiet him," Hardly reassuring. Tell me what you're plotting and I may yet spare you."

Lissa gaped at her," Maribelle! Stop being mean to him!"

"Don't worry!" He assured," Nothing sinister over here. I'm just a hale and hearty boy."

The youngest Exalt tried to move on from the bickering and pulled her phone from her pocket," Here, Henry give me your phone. I want to exchange numbers so that we can hang out!"

The boy was so surprised that his eyes squinted slightly open," Huh? Sorry, I think I misheard you."

"I want to be friends with you!"

For some reason, the beam that grew on his face seemed way more genuine than his usual one," Okie-Dokie!"

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When Robin had forgotten her backpack at the school and returned in the morning to retrieve it, she hadn't expected to see Anna passed out on the field with a rifle resting near her foot and a flag gripped in her hand," Uh, Anna? What are you doing here?"

The redhead bolted awake, a semi confused look on her face," Huh? How'd I get here-oh, that's right!" She stood up and brushed herself off," I was practicing."

The drum major glanced down at her clock," It's only 8:00 in the morning. How long ago did you get here?"

"Uh, I came here after the football game to practice."

"You've been here all night?!"

Anna rubbed her arm sheepishly," I _really_ want to be in marching band."

The white haired girl nodded, although there was part of her that felt the girl wasn't telling her something," Do you hate concessions that much?"

"I hate it...but that's not the only reason," She sighed and plopped back onto the ground, motioning for Robin to do the same," You see, I've always been grouped up with my sisters, and my mother seems to dislike me the most. It's no fun being one of four, especially if you're the forgettable one," she clenched her fist," I want to join band to prove to everybody to I am different and unique! I'm not just an Anna, I'm the Anna! If I don't do something substantial with my life, I might as well let my sisters choose what I do with it," She laughed bitterly," I'm guessing that none of this means anything to you."

Robin awkwardly played with her shoelaces," I can't say I understand your situation, but I can tell you that I know what it's like to feel left out. If I tell you this, you have to promise not to tell anyone or put it in your paper."

"They don't call me the Secret Seller for nothing!"

"...Is that supposed to put me at ease?"

Anna chuckled," I promise on my allowance that I won't tell anyone. Better?"

Seeing that the Nettle-Andersons seemed to be a money loving family, Robin took it," I'm an amnesiac. Everyone doesn't mean to leave me out of things, but they already have lives and best friends, and it's hard for them to let me in," She fiddled with her bracelets forlornly," One of these is meant to be given to my best friend, but Chrom is the closest I have to that, and...well...he's a boy."

Anna puffed her cheeks out," No kidding. The only friend I've got is my editor, Tiki," She turned to Robin," But wait, aren't you close with that Sumia girl?"

"She's already exchanged bracelets with Cordelia, and while we're all friends now, it's pretty obvious that they trust each other more than they'll ever trust me."

The redhead pouted," Well that's too bad-hey! I've got an idea!" She took Robin's hands in hers and grinned," Let's be best friends!"

"J-Just like that?"

"Just like that! We'll act like we did in kindergarten and be best friends with complete strangers!" Anna exclaimed," It'll be loads of fun! You can do my homework and I can break you into the school when it's locked! It's a win win situation!"

Robin blinked," Wait, you can break into the school?"

"How do you think I got the colorguard stuff?"

It was going to be pretty hard to trust someone as quickly as Anna was hoping, but it also wouldn't hurt to have someone she could be exclusively close to. In fact, the entire thing seemed very appealing to Robin," Okay. We'll be best friends. Now come on, I'll help you practice for your audition into the band program."

Anna picked up her flag and grinned in determination," Alright! Let's do this!"

* * *

**Yay, Anna! I didn't plan on them being close friends until I actually wrote the chapter, but I think it works out well (Just imagine how awkward Sumia and Cordelia will feel when Tricky Anna starts hanging around them, bwaha). Also got my Chrobin shippers, Sumia and Gaius, in there! I also can't seem to go a chapter without a small Chrobin moment in it, but I'm not complaining! Henry does attend Plegia, so Maribelle won't be very trusting of him. If you noticed, I took a lot of the conversation between those three from the Tharja support, because Lissa's has to do mainly after Emmeryn's death. Review time!**

**Radio-Blaze: I'm glad that Chrom's backstory worked out as well, and I'm glad that you approve of my AU adaptation of the story! I'm extremely happy you like it so far!**

**Amy47101: ****Haha, don't worry! I have someone else planned for both Gregor and Nowi (you probably already know who one of them are paired with). This is not a HenryXOlivia story, because I've never supported them together and probably wouldn't write them very well, but my older brother pairs them together too. Yay, Henry was in this chapter! He will be in more later, but right now, he's going to be in and out of chapters. I haven't seen Sword Art Online yet, but I have heard of it! That was the first anime that my brothers watched. The only animes I have seen are _Fairy Tail_, _Modaka Magica_ (Sorry if it's spelled wrong, my computer is spazzing out right now), and I've seen a little bit of _Soul Eater, Rave Master, _and _A Certain Magical Index._ Still, from the small amount of knowledge I know, either of those possibilities could work. You should pursue it! ****  
**

**As always, if you have any suggestions, ideas, or requests, I will try my best to fit them in! I always love to hear your feedback, so make sure to comment! And, as always, thanks for reading! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	10. Chapter 10 Silence

**It's Saturday! YAY! There will be something in this chapter that will probably come as a surprise to you guys, but don't worry; I've got everything under control. There are also some parts of this chapter that has OCs in it (Specifically Bryony and Hewitt) to introduce them further into the plot and in one case, introduce a character we haven't seen yet. So, keep an eye out and enjoy! **

**I do not own Fire Emblem.**

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Robin was adjusting slowly to her new life. While her friends from the first week of her regained consciousness were still just as supportive and friendly as ever, she realized that if she reached out to people, she could make an active difference in their lives. Maybe it was the fact that Chrom had been the one to help her in a time of need, and now she felt that she should help repay the favor and improve potential buddies' lives.

So far, she was off to a good start; On the first day she woke up, she had someone managed to befriend two people and raise Lissa's self esteem. Sumia didn't seem as flustered anymore as well, and while Cordelia could be occasionally jealous, she seemed to be adjusting to the new girl. Robin's presence in the band had also caused Lon'qu, Panne, Anna, and the girl's friend, Tiki, to join within the first week. Maribelle warmed up to the drum major immensely after the rescue mission and was trying to get her to teach her "low life slang". Ricken's confidence nearly skyrocketed after the first day of school, and he didn't seem to have that slight fear of Chrom anymore.

That left Frederick.

While her teacher had become more accustomed to the newbie's presence in his band program, Robin couldn't shake the feeling that he still didn't trust her. Not like she could blame him; in the past two weeks, she had dragged Chrom and Lissa into paintball wars, gang attacks, peace offerings, and rag-tag missions. Honestly, she wouldn't trust herself if she was in his shoes.

So why did she desperately want his approval? Was it because she gained everybody else's so easily? Was Frederick her supposed challenge? Robin didn't like to think that, yet there was no other reason that came to mind.

So, you could imagine her surprise when he asked her to babysit Noire for the weekend. To her, it seemed like a simple, yet important, task, and she was more than willing to take him up on it. Frederick, on the other hand, was beyond nervous. He kept sending her emails about what his daughter could and couldn't eat, could and couldn't watch, could and couldn't sleep, could and couldn't read, and so on, and so on...

By the time Friday actually came, Robin had gotten so much information that she felt like she knew the child personally. After realizing that she had gotten her first job, Sumia offered to help (Robin assumed it was probably because she didn't want to spend her weekend in the apartment alone), but the white haired girl politely turned her down, assuring that she had everything under control.

That was how she ended up outside of Frederick's house with her bag on her shoulder and her band binder in her hands. She finger barely brushed the doorbell before her teacher (who looked surprisingly frantic) swung the door open," You're early."

"Only by ten minutes," She responded meekly," Cordelia said that it would be a good idea-"

"Of course, of course," He ran a hand through his ruffled brown hair," Okay, so have you read all of my emails I've sent?"

"Every single one."

Frederick nodded in approval," Okay, but did you triple check each one-"

"Frederick!" Tharja yelled from inside the house," Stop annoying her! You'll scare her away!"

The band director cringed," Yes dear," He took a deep breath, relaxing his shoulders," I suppose you should come in."

Although a little turned away because of his choice of words, Robin made a beeline for the living room. Tharja was closing the zipper on one of her suitcases, grumbling about how much she hated her parents and why they insisted on her coming to visit. The drum major had learned early on that Tharja's parents had never approved of her exiting the cult, but they have been bombarding her with demands that she at least visit them. It was no wonder she was leaving Noire behind," Good evening, Robin. I hope my idiot husband hasn't been pestering you as much as he has been aggravating me."

She shook her head," No-"

"Don't lie."

"...Okay, maybe a little."

Tharja smirked and wandered over to the couch where her daughter was chewing on one of her stuffed animals. She ruffled the toddler's hair before scooping her up and placing her in Robin's hands," Don't worry if she doesn't talk much; she's very shy. Her bedtime is at 7:30, her nap time is after lunch, and her dinner should be around 5:00. You can raid our cupboards to try and find whatever food you want."

Frederick wrapped his arms around his wife's and rested his chin on her shoulder," Did you tell her about-"

"Robin is the most capable of taking care of our child, so you need to trust her."

Most capable? Surely there were other people with more qualifications than her. Heck, she couldn't remember past three weeks ago. Then again, she needed to reassured the parents," Don't worry, I've got everything under control."

The man made a grunt like noise before dropping the subject and kissing his baby on the head," I love you, Noire. Stay safe, alright?"

The tiny girl kissed her father's nose and waved to the couple as they left the house, completely unaware that there were going to be gone for more than a few hours. As soon as the duo had pulled out of the driveway, Robin turned to the one year old in her arms," So, what do you want to do now?"

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Bryony tapped her pen against her notepad as she watched customers weave in and out of the diner. Cherche, who was the counter-tender, giggled at the girl's fidgeting," Something on your mind, Eeyore?"

"...No."

Cherche frowned and tried to pry information out of the girl," Oh come on, there has to be something!" The rosy haired girl pressed," Family problems? Hopeless dreams? Being bullied?"

Bryony rolled her eyes; even though she knew the French hornist was only exaggerating to make conversation, she found the girl's blabber slightly annoying. Of course there wasn't anything wrong with her life. The only unfortunate thing about it was that her parents got divorced the previous year, and she hadn't quite recovered yet. It was hard to feel bad for herself when people like Chrom and Lissa had a criminal for a father and Robin couldn't remember anything at all, so she mainly kept to herself.

"Bry?" Cherche tilted her head towards a booth where a lavender haired boy had been sitting," He's been here for awhile. You should ask him if he needs anything else."

The girl nodded nonchalantly and followed her elder's orders, meandering through the maze of chairs to get to his table. The closer she got, the more she realized that she had seen this kid in band before," Um, excuse me? Would you like anything else?"

Now that she was at her destination, she could see that the boy had been working on a pile of homework," I'm fine, thank 'ya!" He paused," Unless 'ya know somethin' 'bout this his'try paper."

Ironically, she had just finished it a few hours earlier. Bryony slid into the seat next to his and scanned what little things he had so far," It's the paper about Amelia Earhart, right? I guess I could help a little bit, but I don't think I'll do much good," She leaned on her arms," It makes me mad that this stupid paper had to do about her one failure instead of her many accomplishments. I mean, she was one of the very first female pilots, and all we want to remember is how she disappeared," Bryony paused, surprised to see the boy gawking at her," Heh. Seems like I piqued your curiosity..."

"Donnel."

"Bryony."

He let out a low whistle," That's a pr'ety name for a pr'ety girl! Smart too! You sure know 'bout this lady! By the way you explained her, I think I'm fallin' in love...with her."

Bryony's face turned pink," Well, keep this under your hat, but it's long been my dream to become just like her. I'm truly delighted that you're as interested in her life as I am! ...Although needless to say, I'm nowhere close to realizing my dream. They'd probably laugh me out of the Shepherds if they knew...or Ylisse...promise not to tell anyone!"

"She must'a been mighty special if a gal as amazin' as you can't measure up."

"I know, but-" The girl's jaw dropped, and her face turned even darker than it was before," Oh, I'm not amazing, Donnel. I'm just ordinary."

Donnel stuck his pencil in his messy hair and waved the very thought away," Aw, donkey dung! You're amazin' in more ways than I could ever count!"

Amazing? Was that what he had just said? Bryony shook her head," Stop that. You shouldn't try to flatter me—charming though it may be."

"I ain't flatterin' ya, Bryony! Cross my heart and hope to spit!" He declared proudly," And to prove it, I'm gonna start listin' 10 good things about ya every day!"

The mopey girl had to do a double-take," Er, every day?"

Donnel nodded confidently," Yep! Monday to Sunday, no days off!"

"What if I'm sick?"

"I'll call ya'."

"What if I'm on vacation?"

"I'll write 'cha a letter."

"What if I'm dead?"

"You won't die."

Bryony was running out of excuses, so she raised her hands in defeat," Fine. Just...don't make a big deal out of it."

"Anythin' ya' want, ma'am!"

She managed a small smirk, amused by his eagerness," Well, this should be amusing. I wonder how long you'll last."

It felt like her eyes were playing tricks on her, because it looked like Donnel had just winked," Oh, just you wait. I can do this for ages!"

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Meanwhile, Anna had just bargained her way out of working the night at her family store by telling them that she was going to make posters for the place and hang them around. Instead, she had come across the problem of where she should go for a few hours. Eventually she settled on the park, mentally criticizing the ice cream man's technique.

She managed to hold herself back from lecturing him until a black haired boy approached the cart. Instead of talking, he pointed at an object on the menu and began digging money out of his wallet to pay for it. The ice cream man narrowed his eyes," Is there some special reason you don't feel like talking?"

The boy frowned and held the money up in his hand, offering to pay ahead of time for his food. For some reason, the owner was having none of it," Look, kid; I don't know what game you're playing, but-"

Anna's jaw dropped. Why wasn't he taking the money? Why would any shopkeeper with common sense send away income? What kind of a place was this? Didn't this dude have to put up with kids all the time? Why was the mute kid annoying him so badly? She was fed up with this guy by this point, so she rocketed up and jabbed her finger into his chest," Have you not heard of customer service?! The customer is always right, and this kid has been doing nothing wrong! Has the thought occurred that he might be mute or-"

"I'm not mute," He interrupted softly.

She ignored him and plowed on,"-Deaf! Just give him his food and think about what you've done."

"I'm not deaf eith-"

"Who do you think you are, telling me how to do my job?!" The man bellowed," I should call the cops!"

"What crime have I done?!"

"Harassment!"

"I have done no such-"

The black haired boy cringed and hooked his arm in Anna's, slowly pulling her away before the situation could become worse. It was only when they were out of sight from the cart that he released her and awkwardly stuffed his hands in his pockets," Thanks."

The new colorguard-ist huffed," They should drag that man's sorry ass of the-Oh, you're welcome," She leaned against a nearby tree and smirked," You don't talk much, do you?" This answer didn't require a spoken answer, so he only shrugged," I think I've seen you around school. You go to Ylisse High, right?"

"I'm a trumpet player."

She snapped her fingers," That's right! You are, aren't you? You might not know me-"

"You're Anna," He stated automatically," You're on the colorguard team. We have three classes together."

That was the longest she had ever heard him talk. Now that he mentioned it, she had seen him around more than she originally thought. He usually sat in the back of the room with one headphone in his ear. Whenever a teacher picked on him, he often gave one worded answers that the class could barely hear. She was the head of the school newspaper and made an effort to talk to everyone (including Kellam), so why had she missed him? Anna tilted her head," You're that kid that never talks in class..."

"Hewitt."

"Right," She turned her gaze down to her feet, trying to hide the fact that she was surprised she hadn't noticed him before. How was that even possible? She was the head of the school paper, for naga's sake! How did this kid slip past her? Something was up with him, and she made it her personal mission to discover who Hewitt was.

Hewitt looked incredibly uncomfortable, obviously not used to social situations. All he knew was that this girl had just stood up for him, and barely anyone did that anymore," Let me buy you something!" He blurted, clenching his fists nervously as he did so.

Ooh, he wanted to buy her something? Anna did love material goods," Oh, if you insist!" She looped her arm in his, secretly enjoying the way his face lit up red whenever she made physical contact with him.

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Libra knew that he had a girlish appearance, but it was a nuisance whenever he went out. Even when he was volunteering at his church, something always seemed to go wrong. Today was not an acceptation to that.

He had been helping clean out a neighbor's attic, and some of the boxes were incredibly heavy," It's remarkable how much rubbish a family leaves behind...Ungh! This is heavier than it looks!" Before he could comment further on it, the weight was lifted from his grasp," It suddenly feels lighter! But how?"

Virion poked his head out from behind the box and winked," Such slender, delicate arms are ill-suited to this kind of work!"

"...Virion? What are you doing here?"

"This is my house," He explained casually before switching back to his...Eh, flirtier persona," Please! Allow gentle Virion to carry this! I think there's a pillow over there that needs moving if you want to help."

A pillow? Libra could probably handle more than carrying that, but he might as well help in any way possible," Oh. Yes, well, thank you, Virion."

"Think nothing of it, milady! A woman of your beauty shouldn't be reduced to hauling trash."

There it was. He had hoped that something like this wouldn't happen tonight, but fate didn't seem to be on his side.

Virion tilted his head naively," What's the matter, sweet Libra? Did I say something wrong?"

"I'm a man."

"Ha ha ha! Not only are you beautiful, you have wit to... Erm, to match? Yes? Hmm..." The blue haired man leaned in closer," Except now that I look more closely at your face..." He gulped.

Libra sighed and waved it off," It's all right. it happens a lot. I'm sorry I was cross."

"You had every right to be cross, good sir! Ah ha ha! Oh, my. How could I, Virion, make such an error? Me! VIRION! Oh my stars..."

The teenager had an incredibly nauseous look plastered on his face," Are you all right?"

Virion laughed awkwardly," N-nothing! It's just that... your eyes are... so very shiny and pretty... Like two pools...of...something..."

"I'm going to get back to work now," Libra announced, progressively becoming more flustered by the encounter. Virion only nodded and bolted from the attic as soon as possible.

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Robin sat on the couch the next afternoon with Noire in her lap while watching the educational cartoons Frederick had suggested. So far, the show wasn't well developed and kept asking the stupidest questions. She was tempted to just pull one of the movies Sumia gave her out and pop it in the DVD player.

She eventually did just that and was going to make herself lunch when the phone rang. She made sure Noire was comfortable on the couch before going in the kitchen to answer it," Warry residence, babysitter speaking?"

"Lissa was right," Emmeryn answered chipperly. Instead of coming across as cheerful like she had intended, the woman sounded like she was trying to hide something," I knew Frederick had trust in you!"

Robin rolled her eyes and leaned against the wall," Did he put you up to this so that he could have a minute by minute report on how I'm taking care of his daughter-"

"Robin," She could faintly hear the woman take a deep breath on the other side of the phone," Your family is...dead."

The white haired girl froze, dread quickly filling her stomach. She laughed nervously," Ha, that's...that's a funny joke...it was a joke, right?" When Emmeryn didn't answer, she squeezed her eyes shut," Right?"

The woman sighed," They were killed in a car accident a few years ago. It was a drunk driver and-"

Robin let the phone slip from her fingers, barely moving when the electronic slammed onto the ground. Tears pooled in her eyes; how was she supposed to figure out who she was if no one in her family was still alive? Was it even worth it to try and get her memories back? The drum major shakily raked her hand through her hair, holding back the temptation to scream. Instead, she made a beeline for the living room, scooped up Noire, and tucked her in for a nap. While the infant was confused on why her babysitter's face was wet, she stayed quiet and wasn't fussy when put to bed.

As soon as she shut the toddler's door, Robin collapsed onto the couch and screeched into a pillow, hoping to muffle the noise from the baby. Sobs clawed their way out of her throat, making her face feel hot and her breaths shorter. It was only when she felt that she was suffocating that she pulled her face out of the pillow, splashed with a wave of cool air hitting her face. As soon as she felt satisfied enough, she collapsed back onto the pillow and and repeated the cycle. She barely heard the door open.

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Chrom was a bit surprised when Emmeryn had entered his room and told him that he should visit Robin for a while and keep her company while she was babysitting. Now that he looked back on it, his older sister did look conflicted when she said it, almost as if something was troubling her. He had brushed his suspicions off, but they dug themselves right back up when Robin wouldn't answer the door.

Pulling the hidden key out from it's elaborate hiding spot (slid in the crack on the step that was hidden by a bush) he pushed the door open and stepped inside. His heart dropped in his stomach when he found Robin collapsed on the couch, trying to muffle her sobs with a pillow. He hightailed it to the piece of furniture and gently took his friend's shoulders. She flinched, probably because she hadn't heard him enter, but didn't pull her head out of the cushion. Chrom ignored the sound of his heart pounding and guided her into a sitting position, trying to hide how panicked he felt. He had never seen her cry; not when she got kicked in the head, not when he found out about her bruises, not when her foot got caught in barbed wire, and not when she was scared to perform. Whatever had happened was most likely something undeniably horrible," Robin?"

She avoided his gaze and sniffled, probably embarrassed that someone had seen her that way. Chrom frowned and situated her so that she was snuggled onto his lap, just like he did whenever one of his sisters was sad. He used his thumb to wipe away some of her tears, only tilting her head onto his chest once her face was free of the dampness," You want to tell me what's wrong?"

Robin shook her head and curled up against him, releasing a huff of air as she did so. He let out a breathy chuckle and obliged, knowing that it was hard to talk about whatever was bothering her. Eventually, she climbed out of his grasp and fetched Noire from her nap. The white haired girl placed the infant in a bouncer and put Disney's Robin Hood in the movie player before returning to Chrom. Much to his shock, she awkwardly stopped in front of him. Her face, although it was still soaked, seemed to have a rosy shade to it. What was she-

He got his response when she swiftly plopped back down onto his lap. Chrom could hear her heart thumping a mile a minute from where he was sitting, a mix of embarrassment and fear plaguing her features. The blue haired boy opened his mouth to question her actions, but she quickly moved to snuggle back against his chest. Once he got over the initial shock of it, he wrapped his arms back around her. It warmed him to know that she was comfortable enough with him to do so, and he liked hugging her. She jus seemed so...soft. Holding his sisters was completely different from holding Robin, and for some reason, he never wanted to let her go.

The two eventually turned their attention to the video. About halfway through the movie, she spoke up," My family is dead."

Although the news was particularly depressing, he couldn't help but feel greedily glad that no one would take her away from him. He pushed the possessive thoughts away and moved to rub her back comfortingly," Does that mean you remember them?"

"N-no. Emm said that she'd help me find who my family was, and sh-she said that they were killed in a car accident."

For the first time since he had matured, Chrom felt a rush of anger towards his older sister. Why didn't she tell him before sending him over? The Exalt children told each other everything...right? He bit his lip," I didn't know. I'm sorry."

"It's alright, you-" A choked sob broke from her throat," How am I supposed to find out who I am now? Is there any reason to anymore? There isn't anyone waiting for me! No one wants me-"

Robin squeaked in surprise when her best friend spun her to face him, emitting an almost dark amount of seriousness," Don't say that. You're important to Lissa, Sumia, everyone in the band, and..." His face tinted pink," You're important to me."

Her eyes pooled again, not believing what he was telling her," Really?"

The butterflies appearing in Chrom's stomach fluttered," Definitely, and you don't need a couple of adults you can't remember telling you who you are. You are you, and I don't want it any other way. Got it?"

Robin smiled through her tears, cuddling back into his grasp. Time seemed to move on quickly after that, and before the two of them knew it, they were putting Noire in her crib. Well, that was the last thing Chrom remembered, other than offering to stay with Robin. On any other night, she would've turned him away. Tonight, though, she only nodded timidly and settled her head on his lap before he could protest.

He didn't leave until the next day when he was sure Robin would be okay. Emmeryn wasn't home for some reason, so he had to put off on questioning her. Instead, he almost automatically called the only person he could think of at the time," Hello?"

"Blue?" Gaius cried from the other line," How did you get my phone number?"

"I'm a drum major, therefore I have everyone's numbers," Chrom ran his hand through his hair and double checked to make sure no one was listening," We need to talk."

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**Okay, now I know what you're going to say; Robin's parents aren't dead. I know that, but it is important that she _thinks_ they're dead. So why did Emmeryn tell her that they were? Hmm? Also, why did Chrom call Gaius? Tehehe. Anywho, I finally got to put Libra and Donnel in! The whole Libra/Virion scene was put in the help lighten the news that you received right after. Then I put Hewitt (who I also have said very little about) and Bryony in to help flesh out some of my OCs. Before you ask, I'm used the Donnel/Cordelia support for the diner scene (The Anna/Hewitt one was original though!). I based Hewitt's appearance off of the Black haired-white+red coated costume of M!Robin in Smash Bros, and Bryony has short, purple hair cut in a bob. Review time!**

**Amy47101: Yay Ricken+Nowi (not officially confirmed in this story yet, just in case)! I agree, Henry is basically shippable with everyone in the Shepards because he is so dang social and adorable! I totally agree about all the Fairy Tail stuff, they need to get their crap together and make stuff cannon. I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT THE NEW GAME! My brother and I are going to get different games (I'm starting with Hoshido and he's getting Nohr (I'll eventually get Nohr as well)) so that we can have different experiences and share our thoughts. I've never thought about Kellam+Anna, and unfortunately, I have different people planned for each of them. I haven't thought about her children until this point, though. Thanks to you, I've made a new character specially designated to be her kid, so thanks! I love long reviews, and don't worry, Gaius and Sumia are going to be interacting A LOT in the future. Thanks for commenting!**

**myra-is-a-tactician: I'm glad you liked the chapter! I had no idea what to do with it until last Thursday, so I'm glad it was read well by viewers! Thank you!**

**The payday: Haha, don't worry about it; I'm a girl (ironically, I call all my friends "girl", even though a good majority of them are boys). You're clever for seeing the name! I did it like that so that even though all the sisters aren't specifically "Anna", they have the same initials. Hence the nicknames. **

**Thanks for commenting you guys! As always, if you have suggestions, I will do my best to accommodate to them (as long as they aren't too different from my plot). If you want to see more of a character, send me a message of give me a review! Thanks for reading, and I'll see you guys next Saturday!**

**-uprisingdragon**


	11. Chapter 11 Incursion

**Hey guys. I totally had a better intro to this chapter, but my computer shut down on me just after I finished. Basically, this is a plot point chapter that revolves around five characters and has an extra two in there for funsies. Sorry this isn't a very goods start...the afterward will be better, I promise.  
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**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Going to school had become a routine for Robin, so when the Monday after her babysitting weekend rolled around, she was ready to forget about her past and embrace the normalcy of it all. Unfortunately, the day seemed to have other plans for her; For some reason, both Chrom and Lissa barely spoke to anyone throughout all seven hours of school. It wasn't until after band that she finally got her answer.

She was about halfway down the hallway when she realized that she had forgotten her English book in the band room, so Robin spun right back around and re-entered the room, not intending the hear the conversation that Chrom, Lissa, Frederick, and Emmeryn were having," Who sent you the death threat?"

Emmeryn frowned," I don't know. The security cameras didn't pick up anything in my office-"

"There has to be a better solution than running!" Chrom cried," We have an alliance with the police force, so they'll put catching this psychopath at the top of their prio-"

"We cannot wait for them to discover who it is," Frederick replied sharply," If Miss Exalt's life is in danger, we are not going to give this murderer the chance to follow through."

Lissa, who was crying heavily, shook her head," I don't want to go to Chron'sin! I like my life here! Maribelle will-"

"We have no other choice but to get you three out of the area as soon as possible," The band teacher instructed," It will only be until we catch this convict-"

"You're only saying that because you're not the one who is going to have to drop their life and flee!" The bluenette accused," I agree with Lissa! I want to stay-"

"Do you want your sister to die?!" Frederick blurted. The two teenagers flinched, obviously not expecting their guardian to say something that harsh," If you stay, you are sitting ducks! The day I found you two wandering around the city all those years ago was the day I swore I'd protect you, and if I let you stay..." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair," I'm not allowing it-When did you get here?"

Everyone's attention turned to Robin, who was shaking in front of the doorway. Had they planned on telling her, or were they going to ditch town without so much as a goodbye? She stared at her best friend, who refused to make eye contact with her," Why didn't you say anything?"

Frederick slammed the band door shut behind her and loomed darkly over her," How much have you heard?"

She refused to back down and ignored the teacher," Why didn't you tell me?! You said no secrets! You said that you trusted me! You said that...that we were best friends! Was that all a lie?!"

Chrom shook his head furiously," No! Why would you think-"

"How long have you been keeping this from me?!" She continued angrily," The festival? The first day of school? Did you know it when I figured out about my dead parents?!"

"I only learned about it last night," He stated firmly," I would not keep it from you-"

"But that's what you've been doing all day! I agree that if you are in danger, you should do what's best for your safety, but do you honestly believe that I would tell someone of your whereabouts?!" Robin yelled," I've trusted you ever since the day you told me to take your hand, and now I figure out that all of this," She motioned between Chrom and her," Had meant nothing to you!"

"That's not true! You're one of the best friends I've ever had and I trust you more than-"

"Then why," She swallowed a lump in her throat," why did you keep this from me?"

"Frederick said-"

Robin clenched her fists in exasperation," Frederick doesn't control you life, nor does Emmeryn, or anyone else! Nothing was keeping you from telling me-"

"You're being selfish-"

"Oh, _I'm_ being selfish? I'm not the one running away from my problems!" She shook her head," You know what? Your little secret's safe with me on one condition; I don't ever want to see you again! Find yourself a new best friend to make promises to!" Robin winced at how harsh her own words sounded, but there was no going back now. She spun on her heel and walked out the door as fast as she could. The further she progressed in the school, the more speed she picked up until she had broken out running.

She was so lost on her own thoughts that she bolted head-first into Lon'qu's back. The collision didn't affect the sturdy man, but instead sent her flying backwards onto the floor. The brown haired teenager cringed when he saw who had disturbed him," Watch where you're going, woman."

Her actions were finally catching up to her, so she didn't bother getting up from her sprawled out position on the ground. What was the use? Even if Chrom and Lissa did come back, they wouldn't want her. Not after the spectacle she just pulled. It's not like she wanted them to forgive her anyways; she didn't forgive them.

"Who don't you forgive?"

Robin swore under her breath, not realizing she had said that out loud," It's nothing."

"Obviously not."

"I don't want to talk," She growled and flung herself into a sitting position," What gives? I thought you were scared of women."

Lon'qu narrowed his eyes slightly," And I thought you weren't one to judge people because of your amnesiac state."

"I..." Was that true? It made perfect sense to why she liked making feel better about themselves. How had he figured her out when she herself couldn't," I apologize. I didn't mean to snap at you, I'm just having a bad day."

"Is it because Chrom hasn't talked to you? I noticed that you two were very close on the night those assassins ambushed his house," The police apprentice said," He wouldn't speak to anyone during Politics this morning and had you run a majority of the band rehearsal, so I'm guessing that he's the one you're refusing to forgive."

Damn, this kid was smarter than he looked," Yeah."

Lon'qu usually serious demeanor took a turn for a more depressed state," Don't let him get away from you. It's obvious that you two have a strong bond, and if something bad happens to him...you won't forgive yourself."

She quirked her eyebrow curiously, wondering how he was so wise for someone his age," Are you speaking from experience?"

"Does it make a difference to you?" He grumbled.

"No, but it's-"

Lon'qu turned his back on her, poising to walk away,"Whether you take my advice or leave it makes no difference to me. The only person's happiness it will leach from his yours," With that, the silent boy exited the school, leaving her to ponder his words.

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Chrom stared forlornly out the car window, feeling that the heavy rain matched his mood almost perfectly. Why hadn't he told Robin the truth? She had been nothing but honest with him, and here he was, keeping secrets. He knew that it was to protect Emmeryn, but by lying to Robin, he felt that he had put his friend in danger.

Lissa hugged her knees to her chest and sniffled, watching the scenery pass by. Who would tell Maribelle that she was gone? Robin said that she wouldn't reveal their secret, but that meant her best friend would have no explanation to where she disappeared. Then there was Henry, who seemed so excited to finally have a companion. It was horrible that she would be gone before that could form the bond that he so desperately craved.

Frederick was horribly conflicted. He had wanted to tell people so that he wouldn't have to miss his friends alone. He had known that three for most of his life, and seeing them slip through his fingers was an agonizing experience for him. To make matters worse, he couldn't even tell his wife about their whereabouts. The couple had promised that there would be no secrets between them, and yet here he was, breaking that vow.

Emmeryn felt horrible; the only time she had felt more guilt than she did now was when she left for college and left her siblings behind with that...monster. She vainly wanted to turn the car back around and announce that they wouldn't be leaving Ylisse, but she didn't want to imagine what she'd be putting Chrom and Lissa through if she was murdered. Emmeryn had grieved heavily when her mother died, and she didn't want her brother and sister to be put through the same misery.

The car pulled up the Ylisstol, Ylisse's train station. Frederick opened up his umbrella and ushered the gloomy family underneath it, guiding the trio to the building. As soon as they were out of the rain, he informed them to get their tickets while he retrieved their luggage. At first Emmeryn refused, saying that he was not their butler, but Frederick was persistent.

It was on his way in that he saw a wrinkly old man who kept anxiously eyeing the custodial door. Frederick, being the gentleman he was, lightly set the suitcases down and approached the elder," Is something troubling you, sir? You keep glancing at that door."

The old man jumped, a look of pure terror covering his features," What?! Oh, I'm just a b-bit nervous I'm afraid. Gh-ghastly times, these!"

The brunette rose his eyebrow suspiciously," What are you-"

He was interrupted by the supply door busting open, and a bunch of thugs dressed as janitors erupted from the room. One of them held up a gun and pointed it around the scene wildly, panicking the civilians nearby," Move and we shoot!"

As the crowd slowly made their way to the ground, the old man from earlier approached the thugs," Hold, sir! I am the man Judge told you about!" He twitched when he saw the leader casually tilt his gun towards him," Did you not receive orders to take me into your protection?"

The gangster smirked," I've orders to protect a man, true...," He scanned the area as if to mock him," But I see no man here! ...Only a pig! A rasher of traitorous bacon that sold out his own neighbor! And what do we do with little piggies, mmm?"

Neighbor? Frederick's mind spun, praying that this mob attack had nothing to do with eliminating the Exalt family. The old man rung his hands together nervously," Well, you...I mean, perhaps...You let them go free?"

"Oh, are you a chicken now? Bawk bawk!" He roared with laughter," We've a whole barnyard in our midst! Well, it don't matter what you are," He prepared to shoot," The axe will fall just the same!"

The elder's mortified screams echoed in the train station, shortly followed by the sound of a gunshot. Frederick squeezed his eyes shut, not sure if to feel sorry for the poor man or agree with his punishment. The leader clicked his tongue is disapproval," What a waste for a perfectly good bullet. Now, while you and I go inside and fetch the woman, Beta here can keep an eye on these pathetic humans."

Frederick waited until the two left to speak up," What woman are you after?"

The thug, presumably Beta, aimed his gun at him," Don't fall out of line, or we'll have to spill more blood."

He hadn't dealt with being bullied throughout most of his life to step down now. The teacher's eyes flickered over to the dead man's corpse, and he wasn't surprised to find a shotgun hanging out of his coat pocket. In one fluent motion, he swiped the weapon and rocketed onto his feet," I'm not going to repeat myself. Who is the woman-"

Everything that happened next was a blur; This time, Beta didn't hesitate aiming for Frederick and shooting his gun. The man barely had time to brace himself when he was shoved onto the ground. Once he hit the concrete, he shot the villain's knee, effectively taking him down before he could hurt anyone else.

Frederick got to his feet to interrogate the man before he passed out, but a strangled cry stopped him dead in his tracks.

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It wasn't a matter of gaining his trust anymore.

It was the fact that Frederick had a family waiting for him and friends that he was more than capable of protecting. She didn't have a family, and her absence would be far less noticed than his. She had only been in Ylisse for a few weeks, after all.

When Robin saw the thug point his gun at Frederick, she ran faster than her feet could carry her and pushed him out of the way. Merely seconds after she rammed into her teacher, the two toppled onto the ground and her forehead slammed against the concrete.

Her vision briefly blacked out on her, and a surge of pain rolled through her forehead. She cringed and tried to push herself up into a sitting position, but the sudden movement made her head spin. Robin bit her lip to try and distract herself from the horrible feeling on her forehead and rubbed the spot where she had been hit.

Why was it moist?

Her eyes widened in horror as she slowly removed her hand, only to find her palm soaked in blood. Before she could stop herself, she screamed.

Frederick spun around, horror engulfing his features. In the blink of an eye, he was at her side inspecting her. He cupped her cheek and lightly rubbed the skin around her wound," Can you walk?"

She felt her vision begin to blur, and the darkness that awaited her felt somewhat comforting. No! This was no time to fall asleep! Sleep meant blacking out, and the last time she blacked out...she woke up with amnesia. Robin didn't want to forget her friends! She didn't want to go through it all over again, making her friends watch her be an empty shell of what she once was. She sucked in a deep breath and nodded, refusing to close her eyes," I-I can."

Frederick narrowed his eyes," Robin," He warned," Don't make a decision you'll regret."

As much as she hated the idea of being a deadweight, she hated the idea of being a permanent deadweight even more. Her eyes fell shamefully on the ground," I don't want to risk it."

Frederick cursed under his breath, asking why it had to be her. She was too young to be in this situation, and he had been stupid enough to let her get hurt. What to do, what to do...

Lissa knew first aid. That was the best solution he could hope for at the time, and if the blonde was capable to at least stop the bleeding, her wound wouldn't be too severe in the future. Frederick pocketed both his and the thug's gun before scooping Robin up in his arms and carefully making his way into the building. She let out a surprised squeak," Wh-What are you doing?!"

"Don't talk; we're going into enemy territory," He desperately hoped that the Exalt family had gone to the ticket center like he had advised instead of waiting for the train in the loading area. That was where the gangsters were searching for the family, so they three had a good chance of being safe.

Frederick and Robin managed to make it to the ticket area without being seen. The windows were blocked out and the lights were off, but he knew better. The teacher leaned against the doorway," Emmeryn? Are you in there?"

There were a few seconds of agonizing silence until the door was opened up a crack," Frederick?" When the voice, Lissa, analyzed the man, she opened the door wide enough for him to slip in," What's going on-Robin?!"

From what he could see, the only occupants of the room were Lissa and Chrom. As soon as the blue haired teenager heard his friend's name, he jumped up from his spot in the corner and advanced onto the three," Wait, Robin's here-" His eyes widened in alarm when he saw that half of her face was soaked in her own blood. The girl shrank, mortified that things had turned out this way," Gods, what happened?"

"Chrom-"

"What happened?!" His temper was starting to consume him as he shook with anger.

Frederick scowled," She hit her head on the sidewalk. I had tried challenging one of the criminals that had raided this place when he fired at me. Robin pushed me out of the way and got hurt. It is my fault for acting rashly and-," He shook his head," This is no time to feel remorse; I need to find Emmeryn. Where is she?"

Chrom was still in shock, so Lissa answered," She went looking for you."

His heart dropped in his stomach," Where?"

"Through the employee exit. She knew better than to go out into the open-"

Frederick growled, dreading what he was about to do," Okay, you three need to listen to what I'm about to say. This is not a time to disagree or protest, got it?" The three children nodded nervously," Good. I'm going after Emmeryn, because if I'm right, that's where the mobsters are hiding out. Chrom, I'm going to give you Robin and a gun, and you and Lissa are going to have to sneak to the first aid center-"

"Alone?" Lissa whimpered.

Frederick grimaced," I cannot risk taking you with me, especially since Robin is injured. While I would feel safer leaving you here, I don't doubt that this will be the next place the attackers strike. If there is any sign of trouble, run for your lives and shoot."

"What if we kill someone?"

"I'd rather them dead than you," The brunette wasn't one to be very religious, but he prayed Naga that no harm would come to the kids. With a heavy heart, he passed Robin into Chrom's arms and handed Lissa the gun," Once you have reached the infirmary, lock the door and don't let anyone other than Emmeryn or I in. Protect each other, and don't worry, I will see you soon."

The white haired girl squirmed uncomfortably, her cheeks becoming progressively more and more red," I think I can walk now-"

"Robin," Frederick scolded harshly," Let him carry you."

There was no way to stand up to a tone that serious," Okay."

He gathered the three up into a group hug as tightly as he could before exiting the room, leaving the teenagers alone. Lissa clutched the gun, acting as if it were a lifeline," Chrom, we have to go, don't we? We'll make it there in time. I know we will. Right?" Her brother's eyes were focused on Robin, and his face was dreadfully pale," Chrom?! Say something! Say, "Yes, of course we will!""

Chrom blinked out of his thoughts,"...I'm sorry, Lissa. What?"

"Ugh, fine! Never mind!" She sighed a shakily," Let me know when you get out of your own head for a second."

She was right; he needed to be completely focused, and blaming himself for Robin's wound wasn't going to heal her. She was purposely avoiding his gaze and fiddling with the sleeve of her hood, a habit she did when she was uncomfortable. Was she still mad about earlier? If she was, why was she here? Frederick was right, though. This was no time to mull things over. They had to get to safety as soon as possible. Chrom took a deep breath, calming his worries," Alright, let's go."

The two cautiously opened the door and peeked out, relieved that there wasn't a sign of danger nearby. With that reassurance, Chrom lead Lissa out of the room they had been hiding in and carefully crossed the hall, branching into a different section of the station. Once they had safely escaped to the opposite side, he motioned for Lissa to hang back a second. His little sister nodded and watched as he glanced around the corner, freezing up when he saw a man at the end of the hallway," Guys," He whispered," Don't make a sound. We have to get across without that guy noticing us, okay?" Lissa gulped and latched herself around his arm, clutching the gun with all her strength.

Once the thug's back was turned, the siblings bolted across the hall with light feet. They didn't stop running until they finally reached the infirmary. Lissa opened the door first and pointed the gun. In all directions, hoping to scare off any occupants. Luckily for them, the room was empty.

The trio entered as quickly as the could and locked the door behind them. Chrom carefully placed Robin on the ground before motioning Lissa to help him push a long cabinet in front of the door to barricade it. Once they made sure the windows were locked and the curtains were shut, they set to work.

Lissa grabbed the first aid kit off of the wall and set to work. Robin's entire forehead was covered in both dry and new blood, making it look ghastlier than it really was," Okay, it isn't infected yet, but that can change very fast," The blonde pulled the bottle of alcohol out of the box and soaked a cloth with it," Brace yourself; This won't feel nice."

Robin's eyes flew open as soon as the rag touched her wound, and she bit back a scream. Instead of focusing on the pain, she frowned and thought back to the earlier," Frederick almost died."

"So did you."

She cringed at the thought. She had almost died, hadn't she? If Robin's timing had been off by just a second, either her or Frederick would be gone. Gods, she was luckier than she gave herself credit for.

But it wasn't luck, was it? She had known that the man was going to shoot Frederick...how did she know that? No one could've acted as fast as she did, yet here she was. Her brain felt fuzzy, as if it were trying to dig up a memory. How could it be doing that if the events that just occurred _just occurred?_

Robin felt like she was going to be sick.

Lissa frowned a placed her hand on the girl's forehead," You don't look too good..."

Was someone speaking to her? She didn't notice, because she was trying to hard to fight the roll of nausea rolling up from her stomach. Her hand slapped over her lips, and she tried to make a mad scramble for the trash. The blonde clamped her hand down onto her shoulders," Robin, you shouldn't move-"

Uh oh.

The white haired girl couldn't hold it in any longer and emptied the contents of her stomach onto Lissa. The flutist's eyes widened larger than frisbees when realization hit her, and she had to bite back a mortified scream," R-Robin?!" She hissed through clenched teeth.

Chrom, on the other hand, was trying extremely hard not to burst out laughing at his sister's misfortune. If they weren't in a life or death situation that depended solely in silence, he would be chortling like a hyena.

Robin was beyond embarrassed," Oh my gods, Lissa, I'm so sorry!" She rasped, her throat somewhat raw from puking," I didn't mean-"

"It's fine," She gritted," You did just risk your life, The blonde peeled off her vomit covered coat and distastefully set it to the side before approaching Chrom," Let's trade positions."

"What? Why?"

"I want to shoot something."

He smirked playfully," I don't think that's a good reason to give you a fully loaded gun."

"Does it look like I give a flying pony's patootie?" She shrilled as quietly as she could.

Before Chrom could respond, there was a crash at the window. He jumped out of his skin and accidentally dropped his weapon onto the floor. Suddenly, Robin's brain seemed to switch off, automatically replaced by muscle memory.

The white haired girl slid onto the ground, scooped up the gun, and hopped up to the window. She used her free hand to scoop up a beaker before dashing to the window and slamming the glass onto the intruder's head. The man grunted in pain before collapsing back outside.

Once they were safe again, the symptoms of a possible concussion kicked in on full blast. Robin winced and slowly sat herself back onto the ground, leaving heavily against the counter and breathing deeply. What had just happened? Why did she just do that? More importantly, why did it seem natural? Today was ending up to be one, big, confusing mess.

The Exalt siblings stared at her in shock," How did you..."

"I dunno," She murmured, trying to run away the awkward fuzzy feeling in the back of her head," It just happened...," Her eyes fell on the blonde, who was as pale as a ghost," Lissa? It's alright. I'm not going to hurt-"

"It's not that," The flutist replied softly," It's just...you fight a lot like Marth does."

Robin let out a small laugh at first, not quite believing what her friend was saying. How was that possible? They had just met...hadn't they? Ugh, things were just progressively getting worse and worse," She...She did look concerned when she shot me with the paintball."

"She also offered to stay back with you when the assassins attacked my house," Chrom pointed out," Do you think she knows who you are?"

"Emmeryn didn't mention any other family members, and seeing how she looks exactly like you, I'm doubting we're related," The white haired girl rambled. When she caught her best friend's confused look, she slowly rose her eyebrow," What?"

"It's nothing," He spat out extremely fast," I just...she has your face...and your attitude...I just assumed-"

"Maybe Marth is the product of you two in the future!" Lissa teased, causing both teenagers to blush," Time travel might be possible in a few years. You never know-"

Chrom cringed," No, I do know. Robin and I don't have feelings beyond friendship for each other, so don't try and force us to do something we don't want."

Friendship? Wasn't he still mad at her for earlier? Before she could ask, a knock came on the door," Chrom? Lissa? It's Emmeryn. Everything is under control. You can come out now."

The three exchanged relieved looks before pushing the cabinet out of the way and exiting the infirmary. The two Exalt siblings launched themselves on their older sister, scolding her for leaving them alone. Robin, on the other hand, couldn't get the day's events out of her head. How did she know that the man was going to shoot Frederick? How did she know how to keep the intruder from entering the room? Her brain was going a mile a minute. Sleep suddenly seemed like a very good idea. She yawned quietly before positioning herself on the ground and drifting into a deep slumber.

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Everyone that had shown up for marching band practice was thoroughly confused to where their teacher and drum majors were. They had agreed to wait at least fifteen minutes for them to return, but fifteen minutes turned into half and hour, which turned into an hour. By this point, even Sumia, who was filled to the brim with worries, had allowed Cordelia to coax her to go home.

Stahl leaned his head against the hallway wall and sighed, wishing that he had a cellphone to tell his parents that practice ended early. He had been too busy with the others trying to contact their leaders to realize that he had forgotten to ask if he could borrow a phone. He was about to give up and walk home when something caught his ear.

The olive haired boy quietly peeked into the band room, surprised to find Cordelia lightly strumming on an acoustic guitar and humming a small tune. He must've been mesmerized by the sound for five minutes, because the song eventually ended and Cordelia spoke up," Oh, hello Stahl. Why are you still here?"

Stahl shrugged," I forgot to ask if I could borrow a cellphone, so I'm waiting for my parents. You?"

The redhead smiled and held up her electronic," Mine died an hour ago. Would you like that wait in here with me?"

"That'd be great!" He situated himself in the chair next to hers and pointed to her guitar,"'I was drawn here by the sound of music. It sounded amazing!"

Cordelia offered a flustered grin," You are kind to say so. But in truth, I'm quite out of practice. I've had to focus more on my cornet instead of my acoustic, so I'm sorry if I made your ears bleed...because it sounded so bad."

"What? No, you play beautifully!" Stahl reassured," And one of my favorite Ylissean songs, to the boot!"

She turned her gaze to the ground, unused to such praise," It's been so long since last I played. When I saw this guitar at the harvest festival, I just couldn't resist."

He nodded in agreement; if he was that good, he wouldn't be able to walk by either," I remember how you entranced the school by playing at the talent show in middle school. Those were some good times...," Suddenly, an idea popped into his head," Say, why don't you put on an encore performance? It'd be huge for morale!"

Cordelia shook her head furiously," O-Oh, that concert was a long time ago. I don't even think I remember the music," As much as she didn't want to admit it, he had a point. If her music could help calm the nerves of others and make them feel better, then she might as well try to help," Although I suppose I could muddle through if I had the score in front of me."

"Wait, you were just playing from memory?" Stahl sent her a thumbs up," That's even more impressive!"

She turned pink at his praise," Please, Stahl, I'm serious. Stop trying to flatter me. Compared to Phila, I'm just a clumsy amateur," In her mind, it was true. Her aunt Philia was actually the one who taught her how to play, and no one could outrank her.

The olive haired boy rolled his eyes," Well, sure. But Phila was the best I've seen. She could have joined the Ylissian orchestra if she wanted to."

"I always dreamed that one day I might be as skilled as her," She frowned," It's silly, I know."

Stahl patted her shoulder comfortingly," Hey, never say never! Especially when you're so abundantly talented."

She swatted his hand away with cheeks a color that rivaled her hair," Stop it, seriously! See, now I'm just getting embarrassed... Er, oh, hey! Would you look at that? My parents are here...Gotta go!" She packed up her instrument as quickly as she could and bolted out of the room," Bye Stahl!"

He chuckled at how flustered she was. Honestly, he thought that she was almost as good as Philia, but she'd turn a bright cherry red if he told her," That Cordelia...I know she acts like she doesn't compare, but she's never satisfied with being second best in anything. I like her work ethic!" To prove his point, he grabbed his trombone from its locker and beamed," I'm going to have to step up my game if I ever hope to compete with that!"

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Getting stitches on your head felt more odd than it felt painful.

When Robin woke up from her nap, she found herself in a hospital room. Her doctor kindly explained that she had simply fallen asleep because of the trauma her brain had just gone through, and he proceeded to give her a checkup before telling her that she would need stitches. After being injected with some sort of numbing medicine, the doctor had to stitch Robin's gaping wound closed. Once it was finally over, he gave her some medication and told her to comeback in a few weeks to get the stitches removed. As soon as he finished explaining what she would have to do to take care of herself (apparently she had gotten a concussion, and would need to take it easy for awhile), he smiled," Alright, that seems about it. Your guardian's waiting for you downstairs."

Guardian? She didn't have a guardian, did she? Her parents were dead, so it was probably just a mixup. The white haired girl anxiously followed the doctor into the waiting area, where much to her surprise, Frederick was sitting," Sir, I've already told her what to do to keep her injuries from getting, so you and your..."

"Cousin," He lied.

"Right. You and your cousin are free to go. Have a good night."

It took everything Robin had not to let her jaw drop. It was only when the doctor left and the two had reached the band teacher's car that allowed her lower lip to wobble," Frederick, you waited for me?"

He stopped trying to find his car keys and nodded firmly," Of course."

"Sh-shouldn't you be with your family?" She pressed on, even though she felt like she was dreading the answer. Of course he should've been, he was probably regretting staying back to see if she would be alright," I mean, if I had a family, I...I-"

Frederick's face softened as he watched her inner struggle. Eventually, he sat himself on the hood of his car and motioned for her to do the same," Robin," He started slowly," I know you understand that I am harsh and far too wary for my own good. I'm overly protective of my family and the Exalt siblings because they are all I have left. You see, my parents never approved of Tharja, and they refused to speak with me after I married her. I looked up to them so much..." He shook his head," It's because of them that I have trust problems. I'm sorry that I've been treating you coldly."

Robin placed her hand on his shoulder," No, no, you haven't been giving me the cold shoulder for a long time-"

He stifled a laugh," Thank you, but the apology is still necessary. It's just that today...you saved my life. Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?" She murmured softly," You have a family waiting for you. I don't."

"Nonsense, we're your family now."

Robin's eyes welled up faster than humanly possible as she whipped her head around to face her teacher," R-Really?"

He smiled warmly," Of course. I already know that the Exalts adore you, Noire loves you, and Tharja and I enjoy having you around. I don't know how you did it, but you've snuck your way into our ragtag family."

She threw her arms around the man and broke into ugly sobs, letting her tears soak through his shirt," Th-Thank you!"

He chuckled fondly and rubbed her head," Come on, I should take you home so that you can get your rest."

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Chrom watched as the white haired girl slid two breakfast cakes onto his desk the next morning and chuckled," It's alright, Robin. I'm not mad at you."

See kept her gaze on the desk," What I said was horrible and completely wrong-"

"And it was also fueled by the feeling of abandonment," He interrupted," I already told you; I'm not mad-Oomph!" Robin launched herself onto him and hugged him tightly, muttering a constant string of apologies and avoiding the stares their classmates were giving them. Chrom chuckled and returned the hug," You were right about one thing, though."

She quirked her eyebrow up in confusion and pulled away," What?"

"I said no more secrets," He recalled," I promise that I won't ever lie to you unless a life is in danger, okay?"

Robin cheekily held out her pinky," Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise," He swore, latching his finger with hers.

* * *

**Yay, the fight between our main characters is resolved! Not only that, but Freddy and Robin are buddies now! I promise that the next chapter won't be so Chrobin centered, because this chapter had A LOT of Chrobin in it. Originally, I actually had the bullet hit Robin's shoulder to add onto the angst, but it would be harder to work around (she has to conduct, so it wouldn't work...). I almost added Sumia and Cordelia in as well, but it took away from the plot and didn't work out. Ah well. Review time!**

**Amy47101:**** I'm glad you like Nowi and Ricken, I do too! I understand that you like Henry+Olivia as well, there is a huge fanbase for them. Why not get both games? That's what I'm gonna do (eventually)! I'm not going to give away my plan for Anna's offspring yet, that takes away all the fun! Will it scare you if I told you I was thinking about giving Lissa a daughter? The reason it would be Lissa is because I married Lissa in my playthrough as male Robin, so Lissa's kid would be like the blonde version of female Morgan. I was planning on naming her Emmylene (Emmy for short), and she is a sage, so your idea falls right in line with mine! I'm also planning on giving Tiki a daughter named Narcil. And about Emmeryn...**

**Okay, so especially since the next chapter will be character heavy, PLEASE tell me what characters you'd like to see in it! I'll fit them in the best I can! I think there will definitely be some Nowi and Ricken in the next chapter, namely because they haven't been very present lately. I hope you guys enjoyed this (really long) chapter! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	12. Chapter 12 Budding Correlation

**Hey guys! Now, as I said last week, this chapter has very little mention of either Chrom or Robin because the past few chapters (and next few) will feature them as it normally does. As the title of this chapter says, this chapter is devoted to enhancing the relationships I've started to establish (and a few that are brand new). I hope you enjoy!  
**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening.**

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Ever since the first day of school, Ricken had come in the band room to practice and Nowi would lull herself to sleep while listening. The first week went by without either of them going past mutual feelings of amity, but as the second week of their meetings came on, Ricken began to notice her nightmares. He could tell how bad they were if she scrunched up her face in distress or whimpered. When he asked his older brother, Dimitri, what to do about it, the college freshman replied that he shouldn't pry. That seemed to be pretty good advice until the Monday from the third week of school rolled around.

The day had started off bad when Ricken forgot his contacts at home and had to come to school in his annoying nerd glasses. If that wasn't bad enough, none of their authority figures showed up for marching band practice. Hence, there wasn't an after school clarinet session.

Ricken had gone home, but the guilt of leaving Nowi without her daily nap was eating away at him. His parents noticed their son's inner turmoil during dinner, but were brushed off when they asked. Eventually, he told his parents goodnight and returned to his bedroom to debate what to do. Just when the freshman decided that he should call his brother and ask for advice, there was a knock at the window," Nowi?!" He practically tripped over his own feet as he hopped from his bean bag chair and helped the girl into his room," What are you-Are you-How did you find my address?"

Now that they were close up, he could see that his friend was in rough shape. Her already messy green hair was a rat's nest, her bright eyes were dulled, and there were dark circles sagging on her cheeks. If that wasn't bad enough, she seemed like she was going to start crying at any moment. He didn't even want to imagine what his parents would think if they found a girl in his bedroom at this time of night. If only Dimitri was here...

Nowi sniffled and swayed a little, trying to keep herself together," I-I had a nightmare on Saturday night, so I could barely sleep on Sunday night, and I w-was hoping to take a n-nap today, but everyone l-left."

The auburn haired boy furrowed his eyebrows," Wait, you haven't slept properly in two days?!"

"I-It's pretty normal for me," She whimpered without a trace of her usually peppy self," I was hoping I could stay here the night."

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. Did she have any idea how much trouble he'd get in if they were caught? Only someone completely crazy or...desperate. That was it. This was her last option. Ricken sighed," You can stay, but I have some rules. First off, you have to be extremely quiet. Secondly, you have to leave early in the morning so that my parents don't catch you. Finally, the only place that my parents won't be able to see you would be...in my loft bed...so basically...we're going to...Ah...how should I phrase this without making it sound weird?"

Nowi blinked," We're going to share the bed, right?"

He turned as red as Cordelia's hair," I-If you don't mind."

"Nah," She yawned," I'll sleep better if you're with me."

Ricken nodded, not sure whether to be relieved or nervous," Okay. G-Goodnight, then."

The green haired girl smiled and climbed onto the bed, making sure to stay on the side near the wall. Ricken followed suit and turned off the light before climbing in next to her. Thankfully, they were both small enough to fit on the twin sized mattress without too much of a squeeze.

She giggled as she watched him settle himself," It looks like we have another secret, don't we?"

"Er, right. If you can avoid telling anyone about this, I'd be really grateful. People would get the wrong idea."

Nowi smiled," Hee hee! No problem. After all, you're holding on to a secret for me, too!"

Ricken chuckled softly," Geez! Let's hope we won't need to keep any more!" The change of lightning was finally starting to set in, and he felt his eyelids begin to grow heavy," I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight, Nowi."

Just as he was about to shut his eyes, he felt Nowi kiss his cheek," Thanks for doing all this for me, Ricken. It means a lot."

His eyes popped right back open, the sleepiness immediately draining out of his body. He felt a warm glow envelop his body, leaving him with a goofy grin. Once he was sure a few minutes had gone by, he touched the spot where she had kissed him. It was undeniable at that moment that he would do anything for the insomniac, which both excited and scared him. This feeling was a lot deeper than friendship. Was it...oh gods.

He had a crush on Nowi.

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Maribelle had to put up with a lot lately. It was bad enough that her precious Lissa was starting to pine off after a Plegian boy and her parents were once again trying to set her and Chrom up. So when she saw the foreign boy trying to steal food from the band storage again, she blew her top," Hold, you overgrown lummox! I would have a word with you."

The red haired boy tilted his head before dropping the food from his hands," Creasing the forehead and squinting eyes is wasting such beautiful face."

Maribelle blinked," Beautiful? Why, goodness me... Argh! Do not try to change the subject, you silver-tongued weasel! I've a most serious matter to discuss with you."

The senior bit his lip sheepishly, but prepared himself for the upcoming lecture she was about to give him," Gregor is listening."

So Gregor was his name? Why did he speak in third person? Maribelle crossed her arms slowly, making sure to observe his reactions," You took a candy bar from the storage again, didn't you?"

"Yes. Food portions Gregor receives is not enough to maintain mighty physique. If Gregor is fainting from hunger while marching, Shepherd ladies will be plunging into despair, no?"

Maribelle deadpanned," Good heavens, you are a self-deluded nitwit."

He chuckled," Is true! Is happening all the time."

He didn't seem to understand what she was telling him. How could he if he thought that women were after him of all people," Are all foreigners truly this inane, or is it just you?"

"Eh? Gregor is not catching that last part. You must say again."

Maribelle groaned," Listen to me, fool. the Shepherds have strict rules about such things. Food is saved for a reason. You can't just go willy-nilly breaking..." Gregor's eyes were having a serious stare-off with her bows instead of listening," Hey! Are you even listening to me?!"

"Of course! Gregor is hearing pretty lady! Do not be rule breaking near Willy, yes?" He asked, sending her a charming yet untrustworthy smile.

"A lack of discipline leads to disorder, and disorder leads to wickedness. Innocuous though they may seem, your acts could cause the ruin of our whole band."

Gregor scrunched his eyebrows," But Gregor is only taking chocolate..."

The blonde had to fight the urge to slam her head against the wall," You think I'm exaggerating, don't you? One small crack is all it takes to bring down the dam that holds back chaos!"

"...Gregor is thinking Maribelle is carried away with this vivid imaginings."

She glared at him," I am a woman of fair mind and breeding. I believe in what is right and proper. And I will not abide rogues who flaunt the rules that make us strong."

He held his hands up in defeat," Enough! Gregor is making many apologies for candy, yes? From now on Gregor obey all rules and be model of good behavior."

Maribelle felt like this wouldn't be the last time they had this conversation, but she allowed him to get away with it this one time,, Then we have nothing further to discuss. I bid you good day."

Gregor watched as she left the room and let out a low whistle," She is pretty like rose, but her tongue is sharp like thorn..."

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Panne had a burning hatred for any person that wasn't part of the Taguel tribe. They were insolent and narrow minded creatures that found the only solution to peace through fighting. So when the postponed marching practice on Tuesday ended, Panne found herself trying to shake one of the stupid boys that had decided to follow her. Once he was out of sight, she slipped into a gas station and nodded confidently," I should be safe now... There's no way he could track me out—"

"Hold."

Panne jumped in surprise, nearly knocking over a display," Gah! You are no ordinary man..." She had been so crafty, how did the percussionist find her? She growled," Enough of this game. Tell me what you want and leave me be!"

The boy, Lon'qu, took a step back," Do not come near me!"

"Stay away from YOU!? What do you think I've been trying to do all day, you ignorant man-spawn?"

He pulled a small pouch out of his pocket," I found this bag. It's full of weeds...or something."

Panne blinked," That's my bag."

"I know. You dropped it on the field."

The brown haired girl crossed her arms in annoyance," Is that why you chased me all over town? Why didn't you just tell me?"

Lon'qu shrugged," Yes, well. When I saw your face, I became paralyzed with fear. And then you fled before I had a chance to explain."

"Bah, this is insulting," She scoffed," I don't want them, or the bag. They are yours now. Don't follow me this time, man-spawn," With that, she spun on her heel and exited the establishment, leaving him to himself.

Lon'qu huffed and made his way towards the bus station," Blast. What am I supposed to do with these? Hmm...I wonder if they taste good?" This was a bad idea, yet it was so tempting. Eventually, he pulled a weed out and nibbled on it, only to spit it right back out," BLEGH! ...A poor idea."

"What was a poor idea?"

Dammit. He was waiting for the later bus again, wasn't he? Lon'qu swore under his breath and tried not to acknowledge the petite pink haired girl next to him. She watched him curiously as he avoided her stare," Um, Lon'qu?"

"What?"

"Were you just eating a dandelion?"

He cringed and tossed the bag into the garbage next to him," The odd girl in the braids dropped the bag, and I went to return it to her."

Olivia tilted her head cutely," I thought you didn't like women. Vaike said that-"

"That oaf doesn't know the difference between a potato and a sports car," Lon'qu rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably," And going off of what you said earlier...Er, I don't... As a rule."

She smiled softly," You don't actually dislike women at all, do you?" Her grin widened on realization," You just get nervous around us!"

The percussionist forced out a fake laugh," Are you saying I'm scared? Of women? Absurd! Because I'm not. Well, mostly not," He cringed at the look the pinkette was giving him,"...Well, perhaps."

Gods, what had he just said? She would never let him live this down. She'd run around the school, telling everyone that the strong police apprentice of Regna Ferox was frightened of the opposite sex," Hee hee," He perked up, confusion filling his body as Olivia tried to stifle her giggles," I would never have guessed! Hee hee hee hee!"

His cheeks flared up in mortification," Why are you laughing?"

"Don't you see? This means we're exactly the same! We both get embarrassed, and we both have a hard time around people!" She beamed," I-I'd like it very much if we could be friends."

"Me?!" He gaped," Friends with a woman?! Are you mad?!"

Olivia flinched slightly," I know...it's just that...You're the only person I can talk to without stuttering. It's nice. But if you want me to leave you alone-"

"Wait," Lon'qu blurted, cursing himself as he did so. As much as he hated to admit it, his gynophobia wasn't as bad around the dancer as well. While it did scare him allowing someone close, he could help but agree with her. The feeling was...nice," I would wish to be friends as well if you weren't a woman."

A pout formed on her lips as she evaluated the situation," Hey, I've got an idea!" Without warning, she reached out and held his hand in hers.

He winced and tried to pull away, but the fragile looking girl had a surprisingly firm grasp," Wh-what are you doing?! Release me! Release my hand, I say!"

Olivia wasn't ready to give up yet," Breathe, Lon'qu. Let the tension flow from your body...," Her cheeks turned slightly pink," I know you can do it, Lon'qu. I believe in you!"

He felt his own face warm up," O-Olivia..."

"No one is more resolute in purpose than you. You just have to believe."

"...V-very well... Just let go of me!"

Olivia looked down at their interlocked hands and pulled hers away in a flash," Oh, gosh! Sorry! I didn't mean to be so...um...sweaty. Yikes this is embarrassing. I left a big red handprint on your wrist," She hesitantly reached out, silently asking if she could examine it. He answered with a huff, which gave her the okay. Her fingers delicately circled his hand again and lightly rubbed the spot she had gripped," Um, does it hurt?"

He rolled his eyes and watched as their bus began to pull up," It does not hurt, but the experience was nonetheless terrible," Something about watching her face fall made his insides clench up in regret," However, I hear what you say, and I...I am willing to comply."

The pink haired girl's face darkened a shade," I...Uh...yeah, I'd like that. Thank you."

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Lissa kicked her legs back and forth as she waited outside of Plegia Academy. She had decided to accompany her older sister as she went to a meeting with the principal of the school, but was told to wait outside until it was done.

Eventually the school bell rang, and although she was sent a few threatening glances, nothing bad happened until Gangrel approached her," Well look who it is! The littlest Exalt. I heard that you almost got killed at the train station attack. It's a pity that your family didn't even obtain a scratch."

Lissa's insides clenched up in fear, but she put on a brave face," If you had been there, you wouldn't be making jokes. Robin got a concussion and Frederick almost got shot-"

"If I had been there," He interrupted, uninterested in the injuries obtained by non-Exalts," I'd make sure the terrorists would find your family."

Her eyes widened in horror," H-How could you say something so terrible?!"

Gangrel darkened," Your family is so insolent. It is unfair that while you are gliding by in life with your murderer of a father cozy in his jail cell, my parents are sleeping for eternity in their graves. And don't tell me that your mother was murdered; she probably committed suicide after years of living with people like-" He jolted forward suddenly and flipped around, surprised to see a certain white haired boy. His hand flew to the back of his neck in horror," What did you just do to me?!"

Henry tapped the needle in his hand and smiled," I injected you with a fun poison that will kill you if you don't soak the place it was injected in with rat meat. You have about..." He glanced at his watch," Half an hour to do this? Maybe less. I'd start running if I were you."

Gangrel growled, cursing himself for allowing the psychotic boy to do this to him," You're going to regret this, Crow."

"I don't think I will."

The red haired boy growled to get his point across before bolting from the scene. The things that he had said rolled around in Lissa's head, along with the fact that her new friend had just committed an attempt at homicide," You poisoned him?!"

"Nya ha, of course not silly! I just poked him with a needle," He assured cheerfully," I could've if you wanted me to."

The blonde relaxed. Although Gangrel was a horrible person that had been bullying her siblings for years, she believed that no one deserved to die. She shook her head no," As nice as your offer is, I don't believe that murder is the right path to go down. What you did there was pretty impressive though! Is that how you got your reputation?"

Henry nodded happily and plopped down next to her on the grass," Yup! While I can't actually do anything to people, playing with their mind is a lot more fun! Luckily for me, people tend to overthink things, and that causes them more trouble in the long run," He explained," Basically, my "dark magic" is the power of phycology."

Phycology, huh? It freaked out Gangrel, who was practically unshakable. Could it help her with her pranks? She giggled, imagining all the possibilities," You're going to have to teach me a few of your tricks."

He shook his head," As fun as that sounds, the things I work with are pretty dark. The human mind is more twisted and morbid than anyone could ever imagine," Henry brightened back up," I could teach you some of the lighter stuff I know, though! It'll be fun!"

Lissa clapped her hands enthusiastically," Yay! I'll be learning the lighter version of phycology to play mind tricks on people! Hey, that's kind of like light magic, then, isn't it?"

"I guess it is!" He chuckled.

"Lissa?" The two teenagers turned to face Emmeryn, who greeted Henry with warm smile," Is this your friend?"

The sixteen year old beamed and stood up, dragging the white haired boy up with her," Yup! This is Henry Crow! He helped me back is Rosanne when..." She coughed awkwardly," When I twisted my ankle."

Emmeryn lit up," Oh, that was sweet of him to do! My name is Emmeryn, and as you probably know, I'm Lissa's older sister. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Henry grinned," Ditto!"

"Well, Lissa and I had an agreement that if she came along with me to my meeting, I'd buy her ice cream," The woman said," Would you like to come along?"

The boy's smile grew even larger than it was before," Sure! I'd like that very much!"

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Gaius's life had taken a turn for the...well, weird. He supposed that it had all started when he joined a band that was lead by the most popular boy in school and an amnesiac with a mysterious past. He had heard stories about the trouble those two had gotten themselves in, and from what he's heard, they were probably smitten with each other. Unfortunately, him and his big mouth had attracted the last girl that he wanted to talk to, and now she wouldn't leave him alone. His "friends" were starting to get ideas no matter how much he tried to steer them away from it. Gaius feared that if he didn't stop them soon, something bad would happen.

He had decided to clear his mind after band practice by doing some good old fashioned bee watching. The thought of honey made his mouth water, and the serenity of the environment lured him into a sitting position in a climb of dandelions. He watched a fat bee hop from flower to flower, anxiously waiting for it to lead him to it's hive full of honey.

"Oh, there you are, Gaius!"

Gaius perked up, thinking that he had heard something, but brushed it off. He was probably just imagining things. His focus was immediately diverted back to the chubby bee, which had finished collecting whatever bees collected (Honey? Pollen? He honestly didn't care) and was starting to make it's way to a small woodland area. Bingo. He slowly crept onto his feet, poised to tiptoe after it," Easy... Eeeeeeasy... Alllmost theeeere..."

"Gaius? Gaaaaaaius!" Said boy quirked his eyebrow and turned around, both surprised and mortified to see Sumia running towards him," HEY! GAIUS-OOMPH!" Her foot caught on something and sent her flying on top of him. She had somehow knocked her head straight into his chest, dragging both him and herself onto the ground.

Gaius felt his cheeks grow hot when he realized that she was underneath him with her long hair fanned out around her head. Her brown eyes glimmered with embarrassment, but they kept flickering towards his face, trying to see any traces of anger. He was too focused on the fact that her breasts were squished underneath him and the way the sun shone off of her surprised chocolate brown eyes. He couldn't help but think that all of this would be far less distracting if this wasn't the girl he was pretending to have an affair with.

He was yanked out of his trance when a loud buzz shot past his ear, heading straight towards the clump of trees. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the girl opening her mouth to apologize, so he quickly slapped his hand over it," SHHHHH! Quiet down! Can't you see I'm busy here?!"

He could feel her grimace from underneath his palm," Ohm, surruh..."

Unfortunately for him, the (somewhat cute, now that he thought about it) girl had distracted him long enough for the bee to fly away. Gaius groaned and pushed himself off of the brunette," Aw, horse plop. It flew away."

Sumia, although frazzled by the experience, sat up and smoothed her hair," Huh? What flew away?" She tried to ignore his are-you-that-dense look and changed the subject," Hey, what are you doing, anyway?"

"I'm bee watching," He cast a forlorn look towards where he figured the fat bug disappeared to,"Or at least, I was."

The clarinetist looked flustered at first, but the first thing he said seemed to have caught her interest," Oh, I didn't know you liked insects!"

Gaius snorted," I don't. I was just trying to figure out where that little fellow lives."

"You mean its hive?" She pondered the possible reasons to why he would want to find an object full of murderous bugs when it hit her," Ah-hah! NOW I get it!"

Gaius tilted his head in confusion, wondering how stupid this girl really was,"...What do you get?"

"You were spying on Chrom and Robin!"

"...What?"

Sumia clapped her hands excitedly," I thought that I had gotten my hopes up for nothing in the mall when you ditched me, but it looks like I was wrong! You want Chrobin to happen just as much as I do!"

"I have NO idea what you're blathering about, Stumbles," He had know idea how watching bees had morphed into spying on their drum majors, and was still a bit confused on what the two had to do with pirates...or was it a ship of some sort?

"Hey! You should help me get them together!"

Gaius had little to no interest in any of that girly romance crap, and unless he wanted to get involved, he had to dive out of there fast," Uh...wow, look at the time! I gotta fly."

In the blink of an eye, Sumia's expression changed from enthusiastic to depressed," Oh. I'm sorry. I was just getting ahead of myself again. I know that I'm a burden to be around," She let out a shuddery sigh," Heck, I'd be lucky if a boy wanted to go on at least one date with me, because no one else would-"

Before she could process what was happening, she felt him grab her chin and tilt it up so that she was facing him," Don't say that and don't believe it. Don't go out with the first guy that asks you out unless you know him first. There is the right guy for you out there, but there is also the wrong guy," Gaius's face softened," Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"What is going on here?"

He automatically released her face and stood up to address their female drum major," Nothing, I was just-"

"You were just leaving," Robin narrowed her eyes at him," Right?"

The ginger tensed," Yes, ma'am."

Sumia was still in a daze when Gaius left, so she barely noticed Robin bend down in front of her," Sumia? Are you alright? Did he do something to you?"

She managed to shake her head," No, not at all! He was giving me dating advice...or something. I dunno, it was kind of out of the blue."

Robin furrowed her eyebrows. Dating advice? That didn't sound good. Was he trying to make a move on her innocent and horribly naive friend? She decided that she would have to get to the bottom of it before anything bad happened," Uh, Sumia? Don't hang around him for now, okay?"

"Why not?"

"I don't think he has good intentions."

She looked baffled at the very thought," Gaius? No, he doesn't want me to date anyone at all-"

"That doesn't make me feel better, Su," Robin replied softly," Come on, let's go home."

Sumia didn't look ready to drop the subject yet, but she didn't object. Robin, on the other hand, was formulating a plan to get Gaius alone so that they could have a little chat.

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**Okay, so I put Robin in at the end because the next chapter leads from where I left off with this one. While writing this chapter, I knew I definitely needed Nowi and Ricken in (they were one of the first couples I S supported, other than Tharja and Frederick and Chrom and Robin). Also, for both my sake and yours, imagine Gregor is a lot younger. I also put in Panne with Lon'qu (due to request) to help him develope more relationships with people other than Olivia and Robin (am I the only one that thinks it's funny that I've only had him sort of befriend girls so far? Bwahaha.) Oh, and I unintentionally decided that phycology is the equivalent to dark magic in this story because Henry uses it to scare off bullies and Tharja uses it to try to help her daughter. I also REALLY wanted Henry to meet Emmeryn because of reasons that will come up later in the story. Finally, The Sumia and Gaius scene...I wrote it about four times until I decided on the final product. It was tough to decide on how quickly I wanted their relationship to develop. Alright, it's review time!  
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**Radio-Blaze: Thank you! I'm glad you liked that chapter, because I wasn't sure if it would be too action-y or not. I also love platonic Robin and Frederick, so there will definitely be more of that later in this story! I always love when people love Chrobin, and I'm happy you liked the Stahl Cordelia fix too! **

**Amy47101: Yup! I've got some StahlXCordelia coming in (I also put in some NowixRicken for you). That's a cute idea about Severa too! I like Olivia and Henry's A support too, because he breaks his shell a little bit because she is in danger. It's too cute! I will explain who I ship with Olivia when the time comes, because Inigo becoming the product of them is freaking ironic. I think that the two games will be separate ones, and I'm watching the game and praying that all the cute boys are not related to me. I won't tell you because it's a big reveal! Don't worry, it'll be worth the wait (don't hurt yourself too badly, lol). I know! I was just as surprised that we had the same idea! I'm working on developing the heck out of Lissa's kid, and she's going to show up a lot more than you think. I know exactly what I'm doing with Say'ri and Tiki, I just hope that no one blows up on me for it. I totally agree, though. Yen'fay needs to support with Say'ri and Emm needs to support with her siblings. I think the idea of Emmeryn and Gangrel is cute and I would totally put it in this story if a) Emmeryn is 28 and Gangrel is 18 and b)...about Emmeryn...(awkwardly looks away) Spoilers. Thank you, and I hope you liked this chapter as well!**

**myra-is-a-tactician: I hope you liked what I wrote! I don't ship them romantically (ironically, if you've read my other comments about who my older brother ships, PannexLon'qu is his ingame OTP) so I am going to give them a friendship setting. Because of this, if you have any suggestions you want about how they become buddies, I am toatally willing to comply. Thank you!**

**The weasel is MINE XP: BAND BUDDIES! I'm happy that you'd like the story even if you weren't in band (even though there isn't too much band in it at the moment...oops). Luckily, I've already started writing the next chapter, so it will definitely be up next Saturday! Thank you, I'm glad you like it!**

**Thank you guys for commenting! I haven't mentioned it, but I have over 100 pages of this fanfiction posted! I'm not even at the halfway point yet either, so we've got lots of story left! As always, you can suggest characters and I will try my best to fit them in as soon as possible! Hold on to your hats, because in two chapters, this story is going to get (even more) serious. Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon **


	13. Chapter 13 Bubbles

**Hey guys! Sorry this is coming so late in the day, I was at a little girl's birthday party face painting (it was fun)! I'm also coming down with a cold, so I apologize if this chapter is not the best in the land of chapter-dom. You will figure out why this chapter is titled _Bubbles_ very soon...Bwahaha! Lastly, I briefly introduced a character early on in the story named May. May is Hadlee's friend and the only other girl that got accepted into GOTSA. Markel is also in this chapter, but he got a lot of attention at the beginning, so I hopefully don't have to explain too much about him.  
**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Robin came to school on Friday with the air of a determined woman. Ever since Sumia had told Robin about her interaction with Gaius, she had been waiting to pounce on him to tell him off. The only problem was that she didn't find the right opportunity until Chrom pointed out that both Gaius and him had gym before band, and that would be the best time to talk about it.

So, she had slipped out of 6th period a little early and made her way to the gym. Most of the class's occupants were already waiting outside in the hall, including Libra," Uh, Libra? Where is Gaius?"

The boy looked up from the book he was reading and smiled," Ah, Robin. It's nice to see you today. I last saw him in the locker room, but fear not, they should be done changing."

"They?"

"I believe Chrom is still in there as well. Those two were talking about something involving candy and reeds."

Robin scoffed," Of course he would eat candy while playing a reed instrument. Didn't Chrom bother giving him the reed test?"

Libra chuckled," Apparently not. Good luck."

The white haired girl nodded in appreciation before stepping inside the boys' locker room. Much to her surprise, a semi thick coating of steam filled the room. She figured that it was probably because a few boys had taken showers after their work out, so she trudged ahead," Gaius? I need to talk to you about something!"

She heard his voice from an alcove that branched away from the room," I'll be there in a minute!"

Of course. Stupid boys and their odd fascination with stalling as long as they could. She rolled her eyes and headed straight towards the room," I'm just going head in now and- AAAAAAGGGGGGHHH!"

Much to her horror, both Chrom and Gaius were the ones taking their showers. While Gaius was in a...Ah, booth that blocked his...Uh, parts, Chrom was wide in the open. His face flamed up as red as Sully's hair," Robin?! Where'd you come from?"

Robin squeezed her eyes shut and grabbed the closest thing by her, chucking it in his general direction," KYAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

The blue haired boy desperately tried to swat away the abundance of objects she was throwing at him," Blazes, what are YOU screaming for? If anyone should be screaming it's me, isn't it? You aren't supp-" She managed to succeed, sending a tennis ball right at his forehead," OUCH! OW! Stop it! Stop throwing things! Hey, that's sharp! Don't-" A cracked thermometer smacked against his ear, managing to cut it open," YEOWCH!"

"ARGH! Have you NO shame?! Noble or not, you should AT LEASE wear a towel when you address a lady!"

"Yeah, Blue!" Gaius teased," Treat the lady with respect!"

Chrom sent a glare towards him," Stay out of this-OW!-" He turned his attention back to Robin," Stop throwing things! You were the one who walked in on me!"

The white haired girl's face was a horrifying shade of scarlet, making her hair stick out like whipped cream on a strawberry. She had run out of objects to throw, so she spun around and dashed away until the showers were out of sight. Robin ran a hand over her heated face and slid down against the lockers, mortified about what she had just done.

Eventually, Chrom came out with a pair of pants on and his T-shirt in hand. His ear was bleeding a little bit, but he seemed to have cleaned it to prevent infection. His face was still brushed with specs of red, but the smile on his face reassured her that he wasn't too angry. She broke eye contact with him and buried her face in her hands,"...I...I'm so sorry, Chrom."

He chuckled and plopped down next to her, his muscle brushing against her arm," Are we done throwing things?"

Robin's face burned up even more," I think...I don't know what happened. Something just snapped and-"

"Well, no harm done," He pried her face away from her hands, unintentionally forcing her to look as his bare chest. Damn, he was ripped. His abs were incredibly-no, what was she thinking?! They were friends, just friends! Just...She bit her lip, unable to keep herself from drooling at least a little bit. Seriously, did he work out or something? She briefly thought back to him mentioning something that had to do with basketball. Did basketball give you to body of a god-shit! Shit shit shit shit. Friends! They were just friends! She wasn't allowed to think of him that way! Chrom, of course, remained oblivious," I guess this is a form of karma! Ha ha!"

Robin coughed awkwardly," Well, anyway, thanks for being so good natured about it all," She a deterred her eyes away from his torso, even more horrified to see a huge gash on his ear," I feel terrible about that thermometer...How's your ear doing?"

"Better. It still stings a little, but better. In any case, look on the bright side: we've seen each other naked now, right?"

She practically choked on air," What?!"

If it wasn't bad enough that he was flaunting his perfect body, the adorable pout that made his way onto his face nearly killed her," You didn't let me finish. I was going to say that we've got nothing left to hide anymore. In a way, we're closer than ever."

Robin snorted," Not the most appropriate way for a boy and girl to get to know each other... But...I suppose as long as nobody else knows..." She trailed off, slowly moving her hand to fiddle with her sleeve. Chrom, who was completely aware of her nervous habit, caught her hands in his, making her stutter like she did the first time he held her hand.

"It's like we're partners in crime sharing an unsavory past! Anything that brings us closer will make us stronger," A cheeky grin made it's way onto his lips," Just you wait."

Robin's heart nearly leaped out of her chest. What was going on with her? She was acting like one of his silly fangirls-

Oh.

Ooooohhhh.

She pinched herself, making sure that this wasn't a dream that was trying to convince her to think something she didn't believe. Unfortunately, this was as real as it came. She had hoped that she would break the stupid stereotype that boys and girls couldn't be platonic friends, and yet here she was. Robin forced a smirk on her lips so that he wouldn't become suspicious," Partners in crime? Heh heh, I like the thought of that. Well, partner, your secret's safe with me..."

"Hubba Hubba."

The two had forgotten that Gaius was still in the locker room. Much like Chrom, he didn't have a shirt on. In fact, he wasn't even decent enough to put on a pair of pants. Instead, he (thankfully) had a towel wrapped around his waist. The blue haired boy tossed his towel at the candy-lover," Put on some pants!"

"You're one to talk! Put on a shirt!"

"You're not wearing a shirt either!"

Gaius hummed," Touché. Anywho, what was so important that Bubbles needed to catch a glimpse of both Blue and I?"

Robin blubbered," Gaius, I am SO sorry about earlier! I had no idea you were in the shower-hold on, you're not allowed to call me Bubbles!"

He ignored her last comment and began to trifle through his gym locker, finally pulling on a pair of pants and his shirt. Robin made sure to avert her eyes until he was fully dressed again," Aw, no worries. At least I hadn't gotten out, eh? Though you did get to catch a long look at Blue's-"

"GAIUS!" The two shrilled.

"Mhm, sure. Although Blue didn't seem to notice, I saw you drool over his chest."

Robin bit back a horrified scream while her friend tilted his head in confusion," Uh, what?"

"I did want to mention I'm usually in much better shape," Gaius explained," With the stress of school, I've been eatin' more sweets than usual. Usually I'm a real piece of eye candy. Belly like a washboard, glutes like a lumberjac-"

She nodded uncomfortably. Although she wouldn't ever admit it, Chrom was waaaay better looking than-Gah! She was doing it again! Robin crossed her arms," Okay then! That's quite enough. I believe you...," Her eyes fell on something printed on his arm," Er, but I did notice something else, and...it has me a little worried..."

"WHAT?! You saw THAT?! Gods, how embarrassing...It's just...uh...some poison oak I got into the other day, I swe-"

Chrom cringed," I do not need to hear this story again."

"I'm talking about the tattoo on your arm," Robin clarified," Not...your situation."

Gaius's mouth formed a small O," Oh, that? Yeah, I got caught once doing a favor for a mate. Paid the price. But, uh, I'd appreciate it if you kept that little nugget under your hat, Bubbles-

"I have the same tattoo on my hand," To demonstrate, she held it up for him to see," Do you know what it means?"

The redhead's eyes flickered from her mark to Chrom, analyzing the situation," You'll tell everyone, you say?" He cried overdramatically," So it's to be blackmail, is it? Fine then. I can understand taking an opportunity to line your pockets. You can have my portion of today's candy, okay? Will that slake your greed for now?!"

Robin furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, but she was quick enough to notice that now wasn't the time to talk about marks," Er, I'm good, thanks. Also, I'm not blackma-"

"You drive a hard bargain, Bubbles! Very well. Take this custard pie!"

He kept a pie in his gym locker. The white haired girl scrunched her nose up in distaste," ...No, thank you. I'm not-"

Gaius plowed on," If you are looking for ransom, I can assure you I don't have any money. But what I do have are a very particular set of honey cakes in my other locker."

"Look, I don't want any treats from-" Before she could continue, he grabbed her forearm and pulled her to her feet, dragging her out the door," Gaius!"

"Whoa, easy there, Bubbles! Here, maybe a little chocolate will put you in a better mood-"

Chrom furrowed his eyebrow in distress and hopped onto his feet," Hey wait, where are you taking-"

The redhead pretended that his drum major hadn't said a word," Come on, Bubbles, I have some special truffles from Belgium," He continued to blather on about the bribes he was planning on using until they reached a closet. He promptly shoved her inside and closed the door behind them. Without warning, he grabbed her hand and examined the tattoo," Damn, Bubbles."

She yanked her hand out of his grasp and stuffed it in the pocket of her sweatshirt," What does it mean? Does it have to do something with Grima?"

"It has everything to do with Grima," Gaius mumbled," Wear gloves from now on."

"What? Why?"

He swore under his breath," There is no way Blue hasn't seen it. He is so touchy feely with you-"

"Am I now?" The duo were so engulfed in the mark that they didn't notice Chrom standing in the doorway," I'm going to repeat my earlier question with different phrasing; What are you doing with Robin?"

Gaius locked his jaw," I'm helping her-"

"In a broom closet?" He replied dryly," Nice try. Now tell me what you were really doing."

The saxophonist pulled Robin's hand back out of her pocket and showed the tattoo to her friend," She has the Mark of Grima. She's from a gang."

Chrom's gaze shifted from the boy to her hand," I knew that. Tharja's parents are in the Grima cult, and all of the people my father murdered bared that mark."

Things were starting to add up a little now; a few weeks ago, when he had admitted his backstory to her, he had mentioned that when he found her he was terrified that his dad had escaped from prison. Was it because of the mark on her hand? Was that part of the reason he was so protective of her? Robin rubbed her arms anxiously, thinking back even further to the day they were in Rosanne," You said that Grima was a bloodthirsty gang leader all those years ago. Does that make me a murderer too-"

"Not necessarily," Gaius responded slowly," There is a bigger chance that you're straight out of the cult because of your tattoo, but there are some possibilities that could sort of clean your name."

Chrom frowned," What do you mean by sort of?"

"You see, I got my mark because my friend and I tried to steal from one of their houses. My buddy was younger than I, so I got him out of there before the gang member could catch the both of us. He would've killed me, but he decided to brand me instead."

Robin frowned," Hold on, they branded you?!"

"Yup. Did it so that if any Grimleal saw the mark, they knew that I was an enemy or fugitive of the Grimleal and deserved whatever punishment they deemed fit. That was back when I still lived in Plegia, though."

That didn't sound much better than actually being from the gang," You said possibilities earlier. What is the other option?"

The redhead chewed on his lollypop," How can I phrase this without making you freak out? Well...Uh...I've heard of certain Grimleal that will...kidnap women and...uh...you know; claim them as their own and...well...yeah."

Robin rubbed her shoulders nervously," Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"Are you going to make me say it?"

She shook her head shakily," No. I don't want to even fathom the possibility that something like that could've happened to me. Gods, for the first time in my life so far, I'm glad that I don't remember anything," Robin leaned her head onto Chrom's shoulder, hoping to find some form of comfort from him. He gladly obliged and wrapped his arm around her, gently rubbing her back as he did so," So, I'm either a murderer, a fugitive, or a concubine."

"Like I said earlier; wear gloves."

The bell rang, alerting the three that 6th hour had just ended and that they should head to band. Gaius gave the two a parting nod before slipping outside and disappearing into the crowd. Chrom moved his arm so that he was holding her hand again and squeezed it lightly," It'll be okay. They probably think you're dead."

"What if one of them finds me? They'll either convert me, kill me, or..." Her voice trailed off," I should leave before I put everyone in danger-"

"Who is running away from their problems now?" Chrom said quietly. Although his words were very soft, they hit her as hard as a brick would. That was what she said when his family had to escape to Chron'sin, and that had only caused them more trouble in the end. Sensing her confliction, he carried on," Look, do you remember what I told you the day I saw you naked in the shower?"

Robin rose her eyebrow," Uh, you told me that you'd buy me dinner..."

He flicked her forehead," No-well, yes, I guess I did, but that's not the point. I told you that if you were in any danger, I'd protect you. I'm not going back on that, even if you are a murderer."

Her heart fluttered, sending a rosy blush onto her cheeks. She didn't feel this way the first time he told her. Instead, she felt a warm sensation that seemed to swirl inside her chest and made her feel safe. She only noticed now that her hand seemed to fit right in Chrom's, making her feel secure.

There was no denying it now. No going back; Robin had a crush on Chrom.

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"Psst."

Sumia blinked a few times as she sat in her chair with her clarinet. Frederick was currently working on a section with the trombones that they couldn't seem to get, and while everyone else in the clarinet section (save Ricken, who was the only boy) was gossiping, Sumia found herself lost in her thoughts. She figured that she had just imagined it, but when someone made the same exact sound, she curiously turned around to see Gaius," Oh, hello."

"I think I understand your pirate ship reasoning now," The saxophonist whispered.

"It's not a boat, the word ship refers to a relationship."

Gaius paused thoughtfully before nodding," Yeah, I guess that makes sense. Anyways, Bubbles, aka Robin, came to visit Blue and I in the showers today-"

"She did what?!"

Half the heads in band turned to the clarinetist, who's cheeks flamed up red. The redhead snorted," She was looking for me or something, but she never got the chance to tell me why because she was Blue in the nude," The two chuckled softly," It was hilarious! The chick couldn't keep her eyes off of him after that, and he can't keep his hands off her," He shifted to make sure that no one was eavesdropping before continuing on," We need to get them together."

Sumia felt like someone had just told her they were in love with her," Wait, really? Really truly? I thought that you didn't-"

"As much as I hate to admit it, Blue is one of the only guys in this school that gives a crap about me. That, and Bubbles makes him act more like himself than the other girls he's dated. He deserves to be happy."

The brunette smiled," I understand. Robin has gone through a lot, and whenever she's with Chrom, she seems to be at ease. It's nice."

Gaius smirked," So, you mentioned something about getting them together earlier. How about we form a plan?"

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Robin sat in the band chair next to Markel's and watched his oboe in interest. The two had decided to stay after school in order to introduce the instrument to her. Thankfully, Hadlee was friends with Ricken, so she was lounging the the back of the band room with him and Nowi as he played his clarinet.

Markel ran his fingers over the buttons and hummed contently," It's been awhile. Don't yell at me if I accidentally mix up Flute fingerings with Oboe."

The white haired girl nodded and hesitantly took the woodwind from his hands. Much like he had done earlier, she pressed almost all of the keys down and allowed a faint smile to appear on her face," Okay, so what do I do?"

He pulled an odd looking reed out of his pocket and handed it to her," This is an oboe reed. You stick it in the hole at the top and blow in it," Markel explained," Don't freak out if you don't get it at first, it takes a lot of-" He was interrupted when a loud sound erupted from the bell,"-sound...you made a sound."

Robin tilted her head," Is it supposed to be hard?"

"It's one of the hardest instruments to play," The maroon haired boy chuckled," And yet here you are. Wanna try some notes out?"

She nodded enthusiastically and began to play different notes off the top of her head. Markel just gaped at her," What? What's wrong? Did I play something wrong?"

"You...you just played an entire scale correctly...without any memories..." He let out a low whistle," I think that we can confirm that you played the oboe before you lost your memories. That's so cool! Hardly anyone plays oboe! Now we can complain about how much the reeds cost!"

"Yeah-wait, how much do reeds cost?"

Markel patted her shoulder comfortingly," The cheapest are usually around $15.00, and that's just for one reed. I don't even want to imagine how much a whole box costs."

She cringed," Okay, guess I know where my babysitting money is going."

"It's not bad. As long as you take good care of them, they last long," He grinned," Man, this is so neat! Two oboes! We'll be the alpha band! Plegia doesn't even have one oboe, and here we are with two! Ha!"

Robin returned his instrument to him and furrowed her eyebrows," Wait, they really don't have an oboe?"

"They used to. He was pretty good, from what I've heard, but he moved away a while ago. He was only in 4th grade, but many were chatting about how much potential he has shown. Tharja used to talk about him all the time," He shrugged," I think he moved to Chron'sin or something."

She nodded," I'll have to ask her about it sometime."

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Lissa sat huffily outside of the gym as her older brother had a practice basketball game. She had finished her homework over a year ago, and now the only thing she had to do was re-braid her hair over and over again.

It was only when one of her flutes, May, skipped out of the band room that Lissa found herself entertained again," Hello!"

The blonde freshman nearly jumped out of her skin," O-Oh, hello...Lissa."

"There's no need to be so fidgety! I don't bite," The section leader giggled," Are your parents here?"

"Uh...n-no," She replied softly," I usually walk home."

Lissa frowned and glanced out the window, only to find it covered in raindrops," But it's raining."

May moved to hug herself," I d-don't mind, I guess. My parents have more important things to worry about than me-"

"Hold on a minute!" The Exalt said," Why are you thinking like that? You should be the most important thing to your parents! I don't know what parents do first hand, but Emm and Frederick have done the best job raising Chrom and I, and they would do anything to make sure we're safe-"

"P-Please stop," May choked out," I-I know my parents love me, but I have no control over what they do. I need to let things settle by themselves-"

"It doesn't sound like they love-"

"NO!" The small girl boomed," They told my brother and I that they loved us more than anything! Everything they did was for us! It was all my fault!" Her yelling had subsided into whimpers as she shook," They love me, I know it. They said they'd always love me," She bit back and sob and turned towards the door," I'm sorry Lissa, I didn't mean to blow up on you. Please don't be angry with me."

Lissa had a deep feeling that there was something the freshman was hiding from her," I'm not mad, I just want to help."

"...I need to go now."

Before the younger blonde could leave, Lissa grabbed her shoulder," No, wait! At...at least take my umbrella."

May's eyes flickered from the sophomore to her item before she took her offering," Thank you."

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Stahl sat with Chrom after practice, tossing a basketball up into the air over and over again," Hey, can I ask for advice?"

The blue haired boy titled his head curiously," Advice? What kind of advice?"

"Girl advice."

He blinked thoughtfully," I'm not sure I'm the best to give out that information at the moment because I'm not making a move-forget I said that. Umm, who is the girl?"

Stahl blushed," Cordelia, but she likes you, so-"

"Wait, what?"

"...she has had a huge crush on you since middle school."

Chrom felt oblivious," Oh. Well, you don't have to worry about me, I like someone el-I mean, I'm not interested in dating at the moment."

The olive haired boy rolled his eyes," Riiiigght. Anyways, what do you think I should do? I need to win her affections somehow, but it's going to be hard."

"Hmmm," The drum major pondered," Do you guys share any common interests? You could have conversations about-"

"Common interests?! The only things I'm slightly good at are eating and basketball, and she doesn't do either of those!"

His friend rose his eye teasingly," She doesn't eat?"

"Shut up, you," Stahl frowned," I'm in a crisis."

Chrom sighed and decided to take a different approach," Okay, how did you know you liked her?"

"What does this have to do with-"

"Just answer the question."

"...well, I've liked her since junior year when she made me the cupcake, but I don't think I felt motivated to ask her out until I heard her playing her guitar-"

Chrom snapped his fingers," That's it! Ask her to teach you how to play guitar!"

Stahl frowned," Do you not remember the time we tried to become a garage band in fifth grade? Everyone made me promise never to pick up an electric again."

"Right, but Cordelia plays an acoustic guitar, not an electric. Plus, it's not about actually learning how to play, it's about spending time with her. What you do is find a common interest and hook her onto it so you have to spend time together. For example, I'm a drum major. If I had a crush on a girl, I would bring her into band and help teach her-"

"You mean like you did with Robin?" Stahl commented slyly.

"Yes-no! Why would you say something like that?! I have strictly platonic feelings for her! She's my co drum major! Can you imagine-"

The trombonist laughed," You're going to let your position get in the way of your feelings?"

Chrom pouted," I don't have feelings for Robin. She wouldn't like me back anyways. She probably likes Gaius or Lon'qu."

"No matter how much you may deny it, don't give up on her just yet," Stahl advised," I will take your advice with Cordelia, though. Do you have an acoustic guitar I can borrow?"

* * *

**ROBIN HAS ADMITTED IT! SHE IS TOTALLY HEAD OVER HEELS FOR THE DORKY BLUEBERRY HUSBAND! YES! YES! YES! That was a really fun part to right because who wouldn't oogle at Chrom's chest? I decided to mash up Gaius's C support and Chrom's A support together, and I gave you guys some hints to whom the Grimleal may be. There was a small amount of Sumia and Gaius because they are the ultimate Chrobin shippers and will start to become more involved in the story. I realized that Robin needs to learn an instrument, so I put the Markel+Robin part in there, and the friendship Stahl+Chrom (seriously, why don't they get a buddy support? They'd be best friends). Oh yeah, and Stahl likes Cordelia. I didn't really beat around the bush for that one. The question is does Chrom return Robin's feelings? Will he "make a move"? Anyways, the next chapter is the one we've all been dreading; Emmeryn. Prepare yourselves guys. Review time!**

**Guest #1:**** Band Buddies unite! Thank you, I'm glad you liked the chapter! Thank you for commenting as well, and I hope you like my next chapter!**

**Guest**** #2:**** NEW READER! YAY! I adore band AUs, and it fits so well into this story that I couldn't help myself! I'm glad you like most of the ships (sorry about Henry+Olivia, but I'll make sure that they're close buddies) and friendships! I'm so glad you like the way I write Henry, because he's such a kooky character that it's hard to figure out what is realistic and what is cheesy. Thanks for reading and commenting!**

**Amy47101: Nowi+Ricken! Woohoo! I totally agree that Stahl is the best daddy for Severa because she could totally trick him all the time and he would never get seriously mad at her cause he has a heart full of kittens. If her is Olivia, then I'm going to say SPOILERS! I thought that it was two games, but it's crazy that Aqua almost had a similar name to one of your OCs. I'm not getting ahead of myself with new game pairings because I don't have time to look up characters, but I think that it's cool that you're getting it all planned out! Yay, support for my unknown decisions for Say'ri and Tiki! CURSE THE AGE DIFFERENCE INDEED! I'm trying to piece together what I'm going to do with Gangrel after the (insert spoilers here), but I kind of want him to have a friendship/possible romance with Lissa's daughter (IDK, she's like 15). That's weird that young people can get wrinkles...I agree, Gregor is like Henry is the fact that he is shippable with everyone. Thanks for reading!  
**

**Radio-Blaze: Haha, if you read the chapter, you'll notice that Gaius managed to get out of the Robin interrogation. If he hadn't...things would've been very bad. I'm glad that you liked the chapter, and I'm EXTREMELY happy that while you don't like some of my ships, you are still able to enjoy the story! That makes me so happy!**

**Thank you to those who commented! I'll see you guys in a week, where things take a turn for the serious. Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	14. Chapter 14 Emmeryn

**Hey guys! This is going to be a pretty depressing chapter (warning; Character death). I don't want to make this foreword very long because the chapter is a lengthy one, but I'm going to warn you that there is violence and death in this chapter. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy.  
**

**-I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

September 30th represented a lot of things for Robin; that day marked her first full month at

Ylisse High and drum major, and it had proven to her that she didn't need her memories to move on in life. In two weeks it would be the marching band districts competition, which would move up into regionals and then the state championship. They had performed twice already, and were practicing harder than ever to win the state title.

Because of this, it wasn't much of a surprise when Frederick asked them to start creating permission slips for the trip to districts in Chron'sin. The two drum majors agreed and set off to the library to start working. Since it was the end of the school day, the room was empty of any other students, leaving Chrom and Robin to themselves," Did you know that Stahl has a crush on Cordelia?"

The white haired girl tilted her head and pulled her sweatshirt off, feeling that it was too warm to wear at the moment. Her bruises had faded a long time ago and she had gotten a pair of gloves to hide her mark, so she wasn't worried in the slightest," Really? That's a bit awkward because-Nevermind."

"If you were going to say that Cordelia has a crush on me, I know."

"Wait, what?" Robin frowned," Why don't you ask her out then? She's been waiting a long time-"

"First of all, I like her as a friend; nothing more. Secondly, Stahl, who has been one of my closest friends for years, is head over heels for her. Finally, I...I think I have feelings for someone else."

The brown eyed girl perked up. Was he talking about her? Did he have feelings for her? No, that would be crazy. He was probably talking about Sumia or Sully or something. Still, it wouldn't hurt to ask," Oh? Who?"

Chrom's face heated up," Uh...Um...well..."

He was avoiding her question," It's okay, Chrom. You can tell me anything," She braced herself, preparing for the harsh blow that would be him telling her about his feelings for a different girl. She shouldn't even get her hopes up. He's a popular jock with several beautiful girls that would give anything to date him, and she was an amnesiac from a gang. There was no chance he'd return her feelings.

The blue haired boy bit his lip nervously," Oh, okay...promise me you won't laugh."

"Why would I-"

"Just promise me."

She nodded," I promise I won't laugh."

He studied her for a few seconds, making sure that she was telling the truth before turning his gaze onto the floor," I've been thinking a lot lately, about everything. And about you, Robin," Hold on, he was thinking about her? Butterflies erupted in her stomach," In many ways, you're the best drum major I've ever known...and the best friend. You are special, and I...I wonder if you think-"

The loudspeaker interrupted him and prevented him from finishing," We are going into lockdown mode."

Robin tried to hide her disappointment by questioning him," What does that mean?"

Chrom quickly ran to the door, locked it, and flicked the lights off before leading her underneath the check out desk," It's a drill we do every so often in case a criminal comes on the school grounds. We have to hide in here until they say the lockdown drill is over. Easy peasy."

The white haired girl nodded and crossed her legs," So...what do we do until then?"

"We wait."

She tapped her knees, trying to figure out a way to get Chrom to tell her who he liked. She didn't want to believe it, but it sounded like he was going to confess to her. Realistically, he was probably just asking for advice because he had called her his best friend and not his crush. She blew her bangs out of her face and tried to start the conversation back up," You didn't finish what you were saying earlier."

His face flamed right back up," O-Oh?"

Robin hummed," Come on, you said no secrets."

"You're right," He took a deep breath," Okay, what I was trying to say earlier was that-"

This time, the sound of glass breaking caused him to freeze. Robin blinked in confusion towards the sound," Is this part of the dr-mmph?"

Chrom wrapped his hand over her mouth and leaned in towards her ear, whispering as quietly as he could," Don't make a sound; This is not a drill."

Not a drill? Did that mean there were actual criminals on campus? Robin couldn't help but feel that this was all her doing. Bad things happened to the people she were close to, and she didn't want to be responsible for anyone, especially Chrom's, death. She pried his hand away from her mouth and mumbled," They're probably here for me. I should turn myself in before anyone gets hurt-"

"No!" He hissed," There is no way I'm letting you do that!"

She grumbled, but the selfishly scared part of her agreed with Chrom. So, instead of turning herself in, she leaned her head on his shoulder and forced her eyes shut. He seemed to sense her fear and scooped her hand in his, giving it a light squeeze.

Just when she thought the coast was clear, a brute grabbed her wrist and dragged her out from her hiding spot," See!" He yelled at his partner. He used one hand to keep a hold on her hair and the other arm to pin her to him," I told you there were people in here!"

The other man smirked and yanked Chrom out," Looky here! It's Principal Exalt's little brother!" He forced the blue haired boy into a headlock and chortled," Do you think he'll be any use to us as a bargaining tool?"

"Do you remember what the boss said?" The first man yelled," We capture the woman and trade her life for the Emblem."

Suddenly, everything clicked in Chrom's head. They weren't here for Robin; they were there to kill Emmeryn. They had tried to murder her at the train station the week prior, and she had briefly mentioned someone trying to sneak a bomb onboard her train in Rosanne at the end of summer. They had been trying to kill her this entire time, and he had been too dense to do anything about it.

Anger bubbled inside of him. How dare they?! First his mom had to die, then his dad went insane and was imprisoned, and now they were trying to take away Emm? He automatically decided that he wasn't going to let them do that. In one fluid motion, he elbowed the man's stomach and pushed him away, bolting down the hallway as soon as possible.

Much like Chrom, Robin had placed the pieces of the situation together and was more than relieved that he had gotten away to get help. She would've cheered, but the sight of his captor taking out a gun and pointing it at him sent her into action. She kicked the thug's private area and shoved him backwards, leaping onto the gunman's arm. The white haired girl wrapped both her hands around the weapon and forced it up, making the bullet miss it's target and hit the ceiling. By that point, Chrom was long gone.

The man swore and swiped his fist at Robin's cheek, sending her onto the ground," Look what you did! You ruined our plan!"

She tried to get onto her feet, but he stomped on her face, successfully breaking her nose. Robin yelped and moved to apply pressure, but the other man rushed forward and pinned her arms onto the ground. The gunman chuckled and moved his boot from her face onto her chest," Such a pretty face. It's too bad that we're going to have to kill you."

Was this it? Was she going to die? They say that your life flashes before your eyes right before you die, but all Robin could focus on was the gun pointed at her head and the throbbing pain in her nose. Hopefully she was distracting enough to keep them from murdering-

Distracting. Wasn't that the reason she became drum major in the first place? She had unknowingly distracted Chrom, Frederick, and Lissa and let the Plegian burn the original marching show. She had been kicked in the head that day too trying to protect people she barely knew. It was oddly nostalgic, and before she knew it, tears were pouring from her cheeks.

The man scoffed," You think some waterworks are going to save your life? Ha! What do you think, some hero is going to swoop in and save-" Before he could finish, a bullet tore through the man's forehead, immediately killing him. The man pinning her onto the ground let out a startled cry and tried to make a run for it, but two bullets ended his life as quickly as they had killed his companion.

Robin was too scared to move and shaking like a leaf. Two people had just died right in front of her. Sure, they were bad people that were planning on killing her, but the sight of their corpses etched theirselves into her brain and refused to be forgotten. She almost screamed, but someone slapped their hand over her mouth," Hush! If you make a sound, they'll come in here and see the bodies."

She knew that voice," M-Marth? You killed them!"

Robin eyes widened when she realized the state the Marth was in; the girl was shaking just as much as she was and looked like she was trying to force back tears," Th-They would've killed you! I had to do it! I just had to-"

"Marth," Robin started slowly, trying not to ignore the fact that the sixteen year old who had just murdered two people cared about her wellbeing," Do you know who I am?"

She grimaced," That's not important right now. What is important is that you find Chrom and get him to safety."

The drum major had forgotten all about him," What? What's wrong? Is he in danger?" Robin decided that questioning Marth further wouldn't do her any good, so she sprung herself onto her feet and turned to the door," Where is he?"

"He should be outside," The brunette replied. The older girl nodded in appreciation and turned to leave, but Marth's voice stopped her," I do know who you are: You're Robin Doe, drum major of the Ylissian Shepards and close friends with the Exalt family. Don't forget that."

The white haired girl smiled softly," I won't. Thank you."

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Chrom was running faster than ever before. His older sister's life was on the line, and he needed to find where she was before the mobsters that had been terrorizing his family kill her. His strategy so far included trying to open all the classrooms (which were locked) and peeking through windows.

Just when he was about to give up hope, the loudspeaker switched on again," Good people!" A sickeningly familiar voice shrilled," Students and teachers of Ylisse! Welcome! Welcome, one and all! Your anticipation electrifies the air! We ALL remember the crimes of the Exalt family...," Chrom swore under his breath and took off towards the office," Would you have their witch-sister answer for them? Here? Today? NOW? YES! Finally, we will have JUSTICE-"

Chrom kicked the door open and tackled the gangster speaking down," WHERE IS MY SISTER?!"

The male only laughed," I'll never tell you, that would defeat the purpose. Though, I do suppose I could spare your life if you grovel before me. Plead! Beg for your worthless life!"

"I'd give up my life before I'd beg for it from you!"

"Oh, now THAT is a good line. A fitting epitaph for your tombstone, perhaps? But it's not just your life in the balance. Miss Exalt still stands upon the block, and we have a dozen guns trained on her. All it would take is one word-"

"Chrom!" The blue haired boy flipped around, shocked to see Robin with blood pouring out of her nose and a huge bruise on her face. She had probably ran to the office as soon as she heard his voice over the announcements, due to her obvious fatigue. Despite her lack of energy, the white haired girl rushed forwards and grabbed Chrom's shoulder," Did you hear what he said? The only place you can stand on in this school with dozens of guns pointed at you would be-"

"On the roof," They finished in unison. The gulp from the male below them was enough of an answer to tell them that their hunch was correct. Chrom kicked the man and knocked him out before speeding outside with Robin close behind him.

As they predicted, Emmeryn was perched on the edge of the roof with thugs on either side of her. Chrom clenched his fists," Emm! Hold on, I'm-"

The leader snapped his fingers," SNIPERS! If this Ylissien pup or his little girlfriend so much as twitches, shoot Miss Exalt! You wouldn't want me, the powerful Campari, to tell the boss that you chickens out, correct?"

Sensing his rash temper, Robin wrapped her arms around his middle to keep him from running forward," I... I'll kill you!"

Campari smirked," Go ahead! I welcome it. Just know you were responsible for Big Sister's bloody demise!" He turned his attention onto Robin,"...And what of you? Eh? Do you want the honor of killing Miss Exalt?" The only response he gained were glares," ...No one? Bah! Your merry band isn't quite so headstrong anymore, is it? Pathetic!"

"Damn you!" Chrom yelled.

The gang leader tutted," Now, now, my boy—no one needs die today. Not you. Not Miss Exalt. Not your friends. Just give me the Fire Emblem."

That sounded suspiciously like the item Gangrel wanted, which told Robin that it was a lot more influential than the Exalt family was letting on. The blue haired boy looked at a loss for words,"...I..."

Robin tightened her hold on him," Chrom! You can't trust him!"

"Of COURSE I can't trust him! I'm not an idiot! But if I just say no, he'll kill her!" He growled," The gods are cruel, damn them! My sister or my duty...A problem with no right answer," Chrom shuddered," Robin, what should I do?"

Her heart dropped in her stomach. He was asking her to choose between Emmeryn and something that held enormous power. The needs of the many vs. the needs of the few. Robin shook her head," Don't give up! There has to be a way..."

"If there is, I can't see it... Ah, gods!"

Campari aimed his gun at Emmeryn and leered," I will count to three! Give me the Fire Emblem, or your sister becomes a shooting range target! One! Two! Thr-"

Chrom pulled away from Robin and waved his hands," Hold your fire!" He lowered his head in defeat," You win-"

Emmeryn interrupted him," No, wait!"

"SILENCE!" The gang leader ordered.

A horrible feeling made it's way into Chrom's gut, warning him that something was about to go terribly wrong," Emm..."

"Is there no hope you will listen to reason?" The oldest Exalt asked softly.

"You mean listen to more of your sanctimonious babble?! I think not. No, all I want to hear now is the BANG of rifles, and a SPLAT as you hit the ground. Take one, long, last look from your perch. You do so enjoy looking down on people...," Campari sneered," Then prepare to meet the ground, and your maker! That is, unless someone were to give me the Emblem...NOW!"

Chrom ran his hand through his hair, his selfishness overcoming him," ALL RIGHT! All right... Emm, I know you won't approve, but this is my final decision. MAYBE someday we'll face a crisis where MAYBE the Emblem would've helped... But I know for a fact that Ylisse needs you, today! The students need their principal...And we need our sister. If those dark days should come, we'll face them together," He added desperately.

Emmeryn smiled sadly," Chrom...," There was something in her eyes that reminded him exactly of the look his mother gave him before she went downstairs and was killed," Th-thank you. I know now what I must do..."

Chrom shook his head," Emm, what are you-"

"Grimleal! I ask that you hear the truth of my words!" She proclaimed," War will win you nothing but sadness and pain, both inside your borders and out. Free yourselves from this hatred! From this cycle of pain and vengeance. Do what you must...," She turned her gaze onto Chrom," As I will do. See now that one selfless act has the power to change the world!

The boy felt tears threatening to escape his eyes," Emm, no! No!"

Emmeryn watched as her younger brother burst forward and tried to make a mad dash for her, trying desperately not to cry. The Grimleal seemed immune to the heart wrenching moment, which solidified her plan. _No reaction...Was I wrong, then? Chrom...This is some torch I'm passing you._..Even though he was still young, she knew that he was capable of protecting himself and Lissa from any form of danger that should approach them," So be it."

She looked straight ahead with the air of a determined woman. It was only now that she realized the bravery that her mother held that one night long ago when she had told her to run and go to college. She was doing this to protect those she loved, just like her mother had. That was the one thought that accompanied her as she titled off the edge of the roof. _Chrom...Lissa...And all my friends...Know that I loved you._

Chrom could do nothing but watch as his sister's body hit the ground with a thud. An overwhelming feeling of numbness enveloped his body, making him unaware as his knees gave out and he hit the ground. He wanted to believe that it was only a dream, but the toxic smell of his sister's blood filled his nostrils and reminded him that this was no nightmare. Grief hit him like a wave as he collapsed onto the ground, not caring if he was shot or not. It didn't matter at this point. Emmeryn was the only parental figure he had left in his family, and they had just killed her.

Robin covered her mouth in horror and shook her head slowly," Oh gods," She was dead. If he didn't move, Chrom would end up dead as well. The white haired girl tucked away her own feelings of remorse and sped to Chrom's side," Come on, we have to get out of here before they get down here and try to kill you," Her best friend ignored her," Chrom, we have to get out of here," She tried coaxing, watching as the boy refused to leave. It only hit her then that he wasn't going to move unless she forced him," Chrom, we have to go NOW! You are all Lissa has left! Do you want her to grow up without a family?! Emmeryn wouldn't want you to stay! We have to leave-"

"B-but...her body...," He whimpered," I have to..."

Robin was at a loss for words as she watched his emotions overwhelm him. He always had a good grasp on his feelings, but he was loosing that hold quickly. She swallowed," Chrom, we need to hide. They're going to be down here any minute to kill us. Please."

He let out a low grumble before getting to his feet. Robin sighed in relief and tucked her hand in his, dragging him towards the entrance to the band room; He barely made a sound the entire time, his face void of any emotion. As soon as they arrived, Robin pounded on the door," Frederick! It's Chrom and Robin! Let us in-" She didn't even get the chance to finish her sentence, because the door swung open and the brunette yanked the two teenagers inside.

Frederick slammed the door shut behind them before scooping them into a tight hug," Thank gods you two are alright-Chrom?" As usual, the man was able to detect something was amiss with the boy," What's wrong? What happened?"

Lissa didn't miss a beat and slipped inbetween the two to hug her older brother," I was so worried! Why didn't you come straight back here once you heard the announcements? Why is Robin's nose bleeding?" She waved her hand in front of Chrom's face as he remained placid," Why aren't you reacting to anything I say? I just said that Robin's nose is probably broken and all you can do is stare-"

Robin couldn't bear it any longer," Emmeryn is dead."

The blonde paused in her train of babbling and let out a nervous laugh," Practical jokes are my thing, Robin, not yours."

"I-I'm not joking. Gods, I wish I was," She hugged herself tightly," The Grimleal tried to assassinate her, but she jumped off the roof so that they wouldn't use her as a bargaining chip."

Lissa screamed at the top of her lungs, affectively waking Chrom from his trance. Her older brother automatically wrapped his arms around her and eased her onto his lap as her sobs filled the room. Frederick collapsed near the two and punched the ground, tears welling in his eyes," I swore I'd protect her...I'm so sorry you two!"

The blue haired boy shifted so that he was hugging the band teacher as well as his sister. He glanced up at Robin as if to ask if she were okay, in which she simply nodded. He had enough on his plate as it was, he didn't need to know that Emmeryn wasn't the only corpse she saw today.

Eventually, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Robin turned around, surprised to find Anna behind her," The police are here, and they said they'd like to question you on some things. Personally, I think that they should just leave you the heck alone but-"

"It's fine," Robin mumbled," I wouldn't want any of the Exalts or Frederick to have to go through interrogation after today."

Anna furrowed her eyebrow in concern," Are you sure? I can sneak you out of here pretty quickly-"

"I'm positive," She reassured halfheartedly," You should go find your sisters, they're probably worried about you."

"Ha, you obviously don't know my sisters!" The redhead spat," But I guess Annie is looking for me. She's my favorite, and I know she would beat herself up if something happened to me," The two girls exited the band room and towards the front doors," Oh, and Robin? If you need to talk to anyone, you can call me anytime. Don't pretend that the Exalts are the only ones that have had a hard day today, okay?"

Robin smiled and hugged her friend," I will. Thanks for looking out for me."

"It's what friends are for," She replied cheerfully. Her scarlet eyes suddenly fell on one of her sisters," Oh, there's Annette! I better check up with her. Good luck with the cops."

"Thanks," The white haired girl watched the colorguard-ist rush to her sister and give her a hug (of course they were worried about each other; that's what sisters were for) before turning into the office. She quietly sat herself down and hugged her knees to her chest, trying not to let the images of the dead bodies creep their way back into her brain.

"Well look who it is," An annoyingly familiar voice smirked," The Plegian Shepard. Or are you Chrom's dog?"

Robin frowned," Leave me alone, Raimi. I'm not in the mood."

"I wasn't in the mood when you and your friends barged onto my property and made a fool of me!" The girl shouted," What if I point out that you're always there whenever something bad happens? That would make you a prime suspect in the case-"

"Leave her alone, Raimi," The drum major hesitantly looked up, surprised to find Lon'qu standing up for her," None of this is her doing."

"You're not in charge anymore," She spat," I don't see how you even held you title for so long, you're afraid of women-" Raimi paused and tilted her head," Why aren't you telling me to back off? You hate females, that's how it's always been-"

"I've gotten over that now."

The girl gaped," H-How?"

"I started taking a later bus," He replied cooly," Now get out of my sight."

Fear quickly set in Raimi's eyes, and she bolted from the sight faster than Robin would've assumed humanly possible. Once she was gone, he let out a shuddery breath and relaxed, revealing that his fear wasn't completely gone. Lon'qu sighed and wordlessly sat himself next to her," Thank you," She started,"...but why did you help me? I was pretty rude to you the last time we talked."

He fiddled with his hands for a few seconds before answering," I know what it's like to see someone die right before your eyes without being able to do anything about it," Much to her shock, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it," Just remember that it's not your fault that Miss Exalt died. Promise me you'll do that."

"W-Why?"

"Because if you don't, it'll haunt you for the rest of your life," Lon'qu answered quietly," Don't worry; I'll stay with you until interrogations are over."

Her eyes welled up in appreciation," R-Really?"

"Of course."

Robin would've thrown her arms around him if not for his gynophobia," Thank you," Her eyes fell on their interlocked hands, where she spotted a pink bracelet. She titled her head curiously," What's with the pink?"

His face turned bright red," Someone asked me to wear it."

Her mind briefly went back to the very beginning of the school year when Robin joined GOTSA. Was this one of the bracelets that represented someone's crush? Who liked Lon'qu?

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Frederick leaned against the kitchen counter and went over the day's events, wondering if there was any way he could've prevented this from happening. He had brought Lissa and Chrom to his house to spend the night, and instead of sleeping on the couch like he usually did, the older brother climbed right in with his sister and held her as she cried herself to sleep.

Tharja wasn't home yet. She had some late appointments that day, and had told her husband that she wouldn't return until at least 11:00 P.M.. He had tried calling her, but her phone had no battery left, leaving him with no other option but to wait.

The dark haired woman entered the house hesitantly, eyeing the kitchen light," Frederick? What are you still doing up? You have school tomorrow-"

"It was canceled."

Tharja narrowed her eyes and approached her husband," You look exhausted. Why didn't you go to bed?"

"I need to talk to you about something."

"Okay, spit it out," Frederick suddenly broke into sobs and collapsed onto his wife, hugging her for dear life. Her eyes widened in shock as she returned the hug, but fear was beginning to set in," What happened? Is Noire alright? What's wrong?"

He buried his face in her hair," Emmeryn's dead."

Tharja almost collapsed herself, but she needed to be there for Frederick," W-What?"

"She was forced to jump off of the roof of the school today when the Grimleal invaded," He bawled," If that isn't bad enough, Chrom and Robin saw everything. They saw her jump. They saw her die! I wasn't there to do anything!"

She rubbed his head comfortingly, feeling her own tears escape her eyes. Though she didn't often admit it, Emmeryn had been pretty close with her, but she had taken it for granted. Now that she was gone...Tharja bit her lip," Is Chrom and Lissa here?"

"Y-Yes."

She took a deep breath," They're going to need someone to live with, and seeing how none of their relatives will speak with them and their father is in jail, I believe that...," Tharja pulled away from her husband and looked him in the eye," We should take guardianship of them."

Frederick blinked," What? Y-You'd do that?"

"You love them very much," She mumbled," We've practically adopted them into the family anyways. We'd have to cut back on some things in order to buy more food and pay more bills, but I believe that we should be the ones to raise them now."

This was one of those moments that Frederick felt he was the luckiest man on earth. How did he, the wary neat freak, manage to marry a perfect and understanding woman who was willing to foster the two kids that were like siblings to him? It was times like these that he was glad he disagreed with his parents and formed a relationship with her. Without warning, he pressed his lips onto hers extremely passionately," I love you so much."

Tharja melted into his arms and hummed," So I take that as a yes?"

"You knew it was a yes before you even brought it up," He chuckled," I love you."

"I know; you've said it twice now," She ran her hand through his hair," But I love you too. Now, we should get some rest. The next few days are going to be long ones."

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Robin's eyes flew open, her terrified screams dying in her mouth. A frazzled Sumia sat above her, frantically yelling to wake up. The white haired girl only felt a roll of nausea climb up her throat as she pushed her roommate off of her and made a beeline to the bathroom.

The memory alone of the corpses was enough to send her puking into the toilet with tears flowing down her cheeks. Emmeryn was dead. She was the only mother figure she had in her life, and now she was gone. Robin had always counted on her to get her out of a jam, but this time there was no escape route. She was gone forever.

Sumia silently slipped in and held back Robin's hair with one hand as she rubbed her back with the other," It'll be okay."

Eventually, there was nothing left in her stomach to empty, so she leaned away from the toilet and flushed it. Sumia smoothed her friend's hair and handed her a washcloth to clean her face with before gathering her up into a hug," It's okay to cry. Today was hard for you."

Robin choked," But it was even harder for Chrom and Lissa and Frederick-"

"I know, and it's even worse for someone else in the world than it is for them. That doesn't mean they're not allowed to let their feelings out," She tightened her grip on Robin as she cried," It's not healthy to keep everything bottled up. You'll feel much better after you're done."

The drum major nodded and hugged her friend back, letting all of her sorrow out. The two stayed in this position for at least fifteen minutes before Robin was finally done crying. Once they had reached this point, Sumia coaxed her onto the couch and popped Dumbo into the DVD player," I assume you know that Dumbo is the movie I watch when I'm sad..."

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Marth trudged back to her tiny cabin the woods, kicking the door open and collapsing on the bed. The other occupant, a tall girl with brown hair, stopped poking at the fire and ran her hand through the blunette's hair," Lucina? What's wrong? Was your hunch right?"

"I was too late...Our bleak future is written once more, and darkness awaits us all," She barely finished her sentence before erupting into sobs," I'm sorry! I failed everyone because I was selfish and chose to save mother!"

The brunette silently slid onto the tiny cot and placed her friend's head onto her lap," It's alright, Lucina. You've been putting a lot of pressure on yourself. I wish you'd let me help you-"

"And risk the possibility of your parents recognizing you?" She shook her head," No, Noire. I'm not sure they're ready to see their daughter all grown up. It's why I can't tell my p-parents...," Tears began to flow down her cheeks again," It's horrible, Noire. Once you see them, you just want to go up and hug them, but you can't! My parents aren't even in a relationship yet, they would freak out if they figured out they had a child together!"

Noire frowned and continued to brush the girl's hair with her fingers," I-I'm sorry."

Lucina sat up and hugged her friend," Please don't apologize."

"B-But-"

"Please."

The brunette nodded quietly and gathered up the younger girl in her arms," Did you have to kill someone again?"

"It's not much different than what we do in the future, but my mother gave me this look," Lucina sobbed," It was almost as if she thought I was going to kill her too. It made me feel sinful, like I was just as bad as the brutes that tried to murder her-"

Noire hushed her," D-Don't say that. If you think like that, y-you'll start believing it. We all know what happens when someone believes themselves to be a monster; t-they become one."

The blue haired girl sat up," I know. I promised I'd keep in together, and I'm not willing to give up just yet."

The older girl smiled," Good. C-Can you tell me about your mother? I-I sort of r-remember her from when she u-used to babysit me, but you always t-talk about your d-dad and ever s-since Grima..."

"I know," Lucina mumbled softly," Well, she was very smart and incredibly brave..."

* * *

**So...Emmeryn's dead. I'm sorry if I didn't write the reactions to it very well, because I have never had someone close to me die before. If you need an overview of the main emotions, Frederick is guilty, Robin is shell-shocked, Lissa is horrified, and Chrom is being incredibly placid. I'm going to touch more on his emotions in the next chapter (I'm already halfway done writing it, and I must say, it is going to be very angsty). So, Chrom almost confessed who he has a crush on when gunmen came in and ambushed him and Robin. He left to try and save his sister, and Marth/Lucina chose to save her mother instead of Emmeryn. I switched Gangrel with Campari because Gangrel is only 18, so I doubt that he'd be able to pull something off like this. I will say that he was present in this chapter, so see if you can guess where he was. Tharja and Frederick are going to foster Chrom and Lissa. I had a bunch of friendshippy feels for Robin's three closest friends (other than Chrom) Sumia, Anna, and Lon'qu. I also put Noire in there because we all know who her parents are and she's buddies with Lucina (I'm also miffed that they don't get a friendship support). Review time!  
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**The Weasel is MINE XP: That is weird, but I'm glad you commented! I think I'm going to make Anna and Say'ri Bassoon players, so you're probably going to have to wait a little bit. Double reed buddies! (I play the oboe). I also love writing Chrobin fluff, they are so good together! The next chapter is at least 75% (if not more) Chrobin, so I hope you enjoy it!**

**Radio-Blaze: Yup! Robin definitely likes him, so we just have to wait for Chrom to admit it! And yes! Gaius and Sumia are the ultimate Chrobin shippers! Thank you, I feel really bad for Robin because I know the true meaning of her mark in this story, and it is really bad for her. Stahl and Chrom need a freaking support, they would be best buddies forever. Thank you!**

**Amy47101: You picked up on my Tharja+Stahl support joke (I also really like them together, but the other two ships outweigh theirs in my opinion)! Good luck with your archer dude, I hope that he isn't related to you (lol). I love your support so much, thank you! If you think that that age difference is bad, Maribelle is probably somewhere between 15 and 19...hehehe. That's what I was planning on doing between Gangrel and Emmy, but who knows? My story may end up having them together, idk. I'm planning on putting Panne with someone, but I technically couldn't do anything between them until after Emmeryn's death, so you'll get your fix soon! Thanks!**

**pokecharmer007: I'm glad you read it (I find it funny that it is a high school/marching band/gang Au) because I love new viewers! Yay, Pairing and Chrobin supporter! I love Chrobin so much, it's not even funny. I hope on adding more Tiki/Sully/Virion/Kellam/Cherche/Vaike/Miriel/Donnel(ish) in as the story goes on, it's just harder to write for them (not really the case with Sully. I like adding her in for the way she speaks). Say'ri will come in after Districts (I think) and Henry will become a lot more present in this story after the next few chapters. If there are any specific characters you'd like to see, feel free to tell me! Thank you!**

**PhantomTactician: Thank you, I can't wait for you to read more!  
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**Thank you to those who commented! As I've said before, the next chapter is going to be heavily Chrobin and heavily angst (even angstier than this one). I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, and I cannot wait for you guys to read more! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	15. Chapter 15 Don't Speak Her Name

**Hey guys! Happy Saturday! I should off by stating that some characters will seem out of character in this chapter, but it is because of grief and in Chrom's case...well, I'll explain it after you read. Like the last chapter, this mainly revolves around Chrom and Robin, but that is because this is a huge moment in their relationship. I'll start adding the other characters back in the next chapter. Before I finish off and let you read (if you even read the forward. I'm not sure if people do or not...oh well), this is a depressing chapter. **

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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School started back up again that Wednesday, but Chrom didn't come until Friday. Maribelle had somehow managed to coax Lissa out of skipping Thursday, so the blonde sophomore was starting to perk up at least a little bit again.

Robin was worried about her best friend, and was only starting to realize certain things now that he was gone. Other than his usual happy-go-lucky attitude, she had only seen him angry before, and that barely lasted more than three hours. The longest they hadn't seen each other in the entire month has been two days. She was also positive that she had a huge crush on him, which made the situation much worse than it should've been.

When Chrom finally showed up to school on the last day of the week, Robin had buried her conflicted emotions and set off to find him with Sumia. The brunette, who had a phenomenal talent for baking desserts, was carrying a pie with her to give to him as a gift. It made Robin feel sort of bad that she didn't get him anything.

When they found him, he was staring at the inside of his locker, void of emotion. Sumia nudged her friend onwards and approached him, holding out her pie," I made you this."

His eyes slid from their gaze on the wall to her pastry," What is that?" He grumbled uncharacteristically," A pity pie?"

The brunette pursed her lips," No, it's rhubarb."

Chrom stared at her for a full minute before pulling his lips up into the smallest smile Robin had ever seen him produce," Heh. Thanks."

Although there was no apology for the rude comment, Sumia was still relieved that he wasn't too depressed. Robin, on the other hand, knew something was seriously wrong with her friend," Chrom? Are you okay-"

"I'm fine!" He snapped, losing whatever lightheartedness he had picked up from the pie," I'm at school, aren't I?"

"Yes, but you-"

"Then I'm fine!" The tone in his voice warned her not to press him any further," I'm going to politics."

Chrom bolted from the sight as fast as he could without running, leaving the two girls to ponder his actions. Robin frowned and gave Sumia a parting nod before following after him. When she entered the room, she was horrified to find a group of his fangirls surrounding him. He reacted bad enough when two people approached him, how would he handle a bunch of freshmen that were obsessed with him?

What was she thinking? He could handle himself. If he couldn't, he wouldn't be here. She pulled on the sleeve of her purple sweater, desperately missing her Plegian sweatshirt. When she had tried to retrieve it from the library, she discovered that someone had stolen it.

Robin sighed and tried to make her way to her seat, only to find Maria sitting in it. The sophomore smirked triumphantly, as if sitting next to a shell of the normal Chrom was a huge accomplishment. The white haired girl only rolled her eyes and sat next to Lon'qu. The two had come to a mutual friendship, so the tension between them had disappeared," Have you found Campari yet?"

He shook his head tiredly," No. I see Chrom is here today."

"Yeah. He's not himself."

Lon'qu shrugged," I wasn't either when someone close to me died. If it wasn't for Basilio, I wouldn't be the man I am today."

He had mentioned before that he had seen people die, but he never brought up a friend. Was that why he had told her to go after Chrom before he left for Chron'sin? Robin frowned, but decided not to question him on it," Do you think Chrom will be okay?"

"It depends."

"On what?"

Before she could ask, the bell rang and everyone sat themselves down. Some of Chrom's fangirls left, but the few that were actually in politics surrounded him. The people that noticed he was there would stop by his desk and say something that he would ignore. Virion settled behind Lon'qu and Robin and frowned," Why aren't you sitting by Chrom?"

"I don't think he really wants to talk to me right now."

"You're probably the only one he wants to talk to," Lon'qu muttered.

The teacher cleared her throat, gathering the attention of her students," Good morning. Please bring out your homework from last night, we are going to grade it. Have no fear, Mr. Exalt, we are all aware of your loss and don't expect you to do a thing for this class period," Whispers began to cloud the room, some being small apologies or pitiful comments," Now quiet down everyone. We all know what Chrom is going through right now-"

"Did you watch your only parental figure commit suicide for an object?" Chrom interrupted darkly," I doubt any of you have. I doubt many of you have even had someone close to you die."

Robin's grip tightened on her desk as she watched the teacher tut," Mr. Exalt, I know you are in pain right now, but you should be grateful that she got to choose the way she passed. Look at it this way; what if she had been murdered, just like your mother-"

The blue haired boy looked like he had just been slapped in the face. In a matter of milliseconds, he had bolted out the classroom door. Without hesitation, Robin hopped up from her own seat and tried taking off after him. The teacher grabbed her arm before she could escape," What do you think you're doing?"

The white haired girl cast a look towards Lon'qu, who nodded his head towards the door," I need to go after him," She yanked her arm out of her grasp and took off. Robin caught a glance of him exiting through the doors, so she ran at top speed to catch up to him.

As soon as she stepped foot outside, she was pelted with heavy rain. She shivered slightly before following Chrom down the street. It scared her that she had no idea where he was going, but that didn't stop the pursuit. They ended up trekking pretty far across town; she had already formed a cramp on her side and her feet were sore. It was only when she saw tombstones in the distance that she realized he was heading for the cemetery. Seeing that Emmeryn's funeral wasn't until Sunday, Robin had no idea why he would come here.

When she finally found him, Robin was breathing heavily and soaked to the bone. The blue haired boy was fatigued as well as he stared at a tall gravestone," Chrom?"

He shook," Leave me alone."

"Chrom, please-"

"I said to leave me alone!" He flipped around, his face full of a terrifying expression Robin didn't recognize on him; Fury. She opened her mouth to say something, but he cut her off," You don't understand! You'll never understand! You didn't have siblings! Heck, you probably didn't even have parents! You can't remember them anyways! Do you know how lucky you are? I wish I could forget my mother's death! I wish I could forget my sister's death!" His eyes filled with wrath," I hate them both for making me grow up a parent! I hate them! I hate them, I hate them, I HATE THEM!"

Robin tried to ignore the fact that he thought she was the lucky one and took a tentative step towards him," Take a deep breath, Chrom. You don't hate Emm-"

Without warning, he bolted forward and grabbed her arms so roughly she flinched," DON'T SPEAK HER NAME!"

She watched him with wide eyes, unsure what his next move would be. Robin wanted to say that she trusted him. She wanted to say she wasn't frightened of him. His hold on her continuously tightened with every second that ticked by, and she was almost scared her break one of her arms," Chrom, listen to me. Y-You need to calm-"

"Calm down? CALM DOWN?! YOU'RE JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE! YOU WANT ME TO HIDE MY EMOTIONS FROM YOU TOO! JUST LIKE LISSA AND FREDERICK!" His hands were crushing her arm by this point," I HATE YOU! I HATE-"

Before she could stop herself, a yelp sprung from her lips," Please stop! You're hurting me!"

Chrom's eyes flickered from her to his hands, a horrified expression bubbling into his features," Oh g-gods," He immediately released her and backed away, looking from his palms to Robin," S-Stay away from me. I don't want to hurt you."

She ignored the stinging sensation erupting in her muscles and gently approached him," Chrom..."

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!"

Robin shook her head and tried to meet him, but he tripped over his own feet and hit the ground. She gasped and shot down onto her knees, crawling over so that she was sitting in front of him," Chrom! Are you alright?"

He murmured something so quietly that she couldn't even hear it. Chrom buried his face in his knees and began to rock back and forth, shaking as if he was in a blizzard. He continued to repeat it over and over again, and it was only when his voice rose with panic that she realized what he was saying," Don't let me become my father! Don't let me become my father!"

She threw caution to the wind and coaxed his head out," Chrom-"

"I can't become my father! I don't want to hurt people!"

"I know-"

"Don't let me become my father! Please!"

Robin climbed over his lap and smoothed his sopping wet face with both her hands, unsure if there were any tears present yet or not," I promise I won't," Chrom's screams died down almost immediately as he observed her. Eventually, his face scrunched up and he broke into desperate sobs. Robin sighed in relief and wrapped her arms around her head, allowing him to bury his head in her sweater. She gently stroked his hair as he cried and rocked him a little bit, hoping to provide him at least some comfort in this time of need. Much to her surprise, he wrapped his arms around her middle and clutched her, unwilling to let her leave anytime soon.

"I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you," He choked," I don't ever want to hurt you again. Gods, I hurt you! I'm so so sorry. I didn't mean to. I'm sorry. I don't hate you. I could never hate you. I need you. Please don't leave me. I didn't meant to hurt you. I'm so sorry..."

She pressed her lips onto the top of his head," It's okay. I know you didn't want to, and I'm not going to leave."

His tears continued to poor down his cheeks and mixed with the downpour of rain," Don't let me hurt Lissa. I love Lissa so much. You and her are all I have left. I need you so much. I n-need Emm. I miss Emm. Why did she leave? Was I a bad brother? Did I disappoint her? I love her..."

"No, Chrom. She did not hate you. She loved you very much."

"Then why did she leave?"

Robin squeezed her eyes shut, unable to keep her own tears in," She wanted what was best for Lissa and you. I'm not s-sure how all of this is better than it would b-be if she hadn't jumped, but she knew what you two needed."

He nuzzled even deeper into her drenched sweater," B-But we need her."

"I know," She murmured," I know."

"I need y-you. Please don't leave me," Chrom begged," I-I have to keep you safe. I just have to. I'm going to keep you safe. I promise."

She processed his words in revelation," Me? But you've only known me for a little over a month. I'm not that important-"

Much to her surprise, he growled and held onto her possessively," You're important to me. You're so important to me. I didn't mean to hurt you. I'll keep you safe from the bad guys. I won't let you die either. I'll protect you. You're so important to me...," He began to choke over his own sobs, so he stopped talking and moved himself so that he was crying into the crook of her neck.

Robin was at a loss for words, so she positioned her head back on top of his and began to comb through his hair with her fingers until he was done crying. Once Chrom ran out of tears, he let out an exhausted huff of air and burrowed himself deeper into her neck. Robin didn't move from her spot and continued smoothing his hair over and over again," You're important to me too, Chrom," He hummed, encouraging her to continue talking," Emmeryn loved you and Lissa very much. She wouldn't of left you guys without a good reason."

"I know," It was only evident then that she was practically straddling him on his lap. Robin tried desperately to hide her blush, but it was no use because her co-drum major wasn't going to let her go anytime soon," Where's your sweatshirt?"

"It got stolen."

"Oh," Chrom leaned his head back against the grave and tilted her head so that her chin was resting on his shoulder," C-Can we stay like this for awhile? I thought I was ready to go back to school, but...the things they said..."

Tears welled in his eyes, and Robin made sure to swipe away the few rogue ones that managed to slip out," I'll stay as long as you like."

"R-Really?" She nodded," Thank you. I need this. I need you," He readjusted a little bit to make himself more comfortable before leaning his head against hers," I needed to be strong for Lissa. I needed to be the one to comfort her and make sure she was getting sleep. I couldn't let Frederick know because he'd feel guiltier than he already does. I thought I could handle it...I can't, Robin. I just can't," Tears slid down his cheeks," I thought I could handle it..."

The white haired girl frowned and placed her hands on top of his," Chrom, you are unbelievably strong. I'm so proud of you, but you know that you can always come to me if you're grieving, right? You don't have to handle it by yourself."

"Thank you, that means a lot," He squeezed her hands gently and frowned," I wish there was some way I could've prevented her death. Gods, I was just so powerless!"

She couldn't believe what he was saying," It's not your fault, Chrom."

"...She did it for me, Robin. So that I wouldn't have to live with the guilt of either choice, she chose for me. She sacrificed herself rather than give up what could one day save her people..."

Robin shimmied herself so that she was facing him," Chrom... Listen to me," His gaze trailed onto the ground, refusing to make eye contact. She frowned and used her hands to cup his face and tilt his head back up," Look at me," His once lively eyes were now dull and glossed over, causing a stab of pain in her heart," I was powerless once, too, remember? And yes, alone, I don't think either one of us is half the person your sister was," The white haired girl moved her hands back into his and caressed them," But together...maybe we can be something more. If you fall, I'll be there to pull you back up. When you fight for your sister's ideals, I'll be by your side. You don't have to become your sister, you know. You can still be true to yourself. You just have to be there for Lissa and the band."

Chrom allowed himself to tear up again," And what if I can't? What if I'm not worthy of her ideals? Robin, what if I drag you down with me?"

Robin wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. He quickly moved his arms back around her waist and placed his chin on her shoulder," If you aren't worthy, you'll keep at it until you are. And if we both fall down...well, that's what friends are for, isn't it?"

She could feel his lips lift into a smile against her skin," Robin, I...," He paused," Gods, I'm so lucky to have you," The two stayed like that for a few more minutes until Chrom pulled away. His fingers gingerly ran over her healing nose," You never did tell me how this happened."

"It was never important," She lied nonchalantly," We should call Frederick so that he doesn't worry-"

"I did on my way here," The boy interrupted before seriously asking," Robin, how did you break your nose?"

Her face fell as she tried to figure out a way to tell him," Those thugs in the library were going to shoot you when you ran away, so I aimed the gun away. The man p-punched my face and knocked me onto the ground before stomping on my nose," She watched as his face slowly crumpled up with guilt," It didn't hurt that badly."

"Oh gods," Chrom tightened his hold on her, but not enough to cause any harm," I broke my promise. I said that I'd protect you from danger, but I left you alone with two gangsters!" He observed her expression turn slightly darker than before," You're not telling me everything. What else happened?"

"Nothing else-"

"We said that there would be no more secrets between us-"

"They t-tried to k-kill me," Truthfully, she didn't like to think back to that day. Whenever she did, she felt like puking. If Sumia hadn't been there for her, she knew that the problem would be much worse than it already was, but it was scary nonetheless. Despite being in a frail emotional state himself, he coaxed her head into his chest and held her as she shook," B-Before they could finish the j-job, someone sh-shot both of them. I-I know they were b-bad people, but I can't g-get the image of th-their corpse's out of my head."

She could feel some of his tears drop onto the back of her neck," Gods, I'm so sorry Robin! I should've been there. I'm so useless!"

"No you're not," Robin pulled away and looked him in the eye," D-Don't pretend that I don't need you as much as y-you need me."

Chrom let out a shuddery sigh and held her close to him," I know. Thank you for telling me."

She gripped his sweatshirt tightly, guilt beginning to eat at her," No, don't thank me. It was my burden and-"

"Now it's our burden," He looked up at the rain pouring down and felt her sneeze into his chest," Come on, we should leave before we get sick," Chrom carefully lifted her off his lap and helped her to her feet, turning around to face the grave one last time," Thank you for bringing Robin to me, mom. I don't know what would've happened if she hadn't come," The white haired girl quirked her eyebrow and peeked at the tomb, surprised to find the name May Lucina Exalt scribed on it," I don't hate you, mom, and I don't think I ever will. I'll come visit you after Emm's funeral, okay? Tell her I said hi, and that I love her too," He quietly locked his hand with Robin's and squeezed it," I love you. Goodbye."

He had come to visit his mother. That wasn't too shocking, not with the comment their teacher had made earlier. Chrom turned away from the grave and started to exit the graveyard, moving his arm so that it was around Robin's shoulders. Every once and awhile, he would sniffle, but his emotions never got the best of him again. Instead of heading back to school like she figured he would, he went to his house," Chrom, what are we doing here?"

He quietly unlocked the house and stepped inside," I haven't been here since Monday morning...Sorry, did you say something?"

"Why are we here?"

"Sorry, I thought it was obvious; I'm getting a spare change of clothes. Be right back," Chrom pried his muddy shoes off by the door before dashing up the stairs," Make yourself comfortable!"

She hadn't been there since the first attempt on Emmeryn's life. Robin shivered and untied her shoes, gently setting them by the door before hesitantly making her way into the kitchen. She would've snuggled on the couch, but she didn't want to ruin it. Chances were she was just as messy and wet as he was.

Eventually she settled onto one of the bar stools in the kitchen and found herself staring out the window. She hoped that her friends weren't too worried about her. Maybe she should call Sumia and-

Her thoughts were interrupted when a pile of something soft smacked into the side of her head," Oops, sorry!" Robin glanced up at Chrom, who was wearing an entirely different set of clothes," I thought you heard me come down."

"What'd you throw at me?"

He plopped down on one of the steps and smiled in amusement," Clothes. What did you think?"

Robin pouted and picked up the articles of clothing from off the ground," The thought was sweet, but I don't think anything of Lissa's will fit me."

"I know; those are my clothes."

Her face flamed up a thousand times redder than she thought it could. He wanted her to wear his clothes? Wasn't that the thing boyfriends let their girlfriends do? No. Don't be silly. He just wanted her to stay healthy. That's it," Oh, Uh thanks. Is there somewhere I can...uh...change?"

"The bathroom is down the hall and on the left."

Robin nodded and rushed away as fast as her feet could carry her. As soon as she was sure she locked the door behind her, she peeled her drenched clothing off and replaced it with his soft, warm clothes. He had supplied her with a pair of sweatpants that had a drawstring on them so that she could adjust them to fit her waist. Along with that, there was a long sleeved t-shirt that said 7th Grade Camp on it. As soon as she was dressed, she looked over herself in the mirror; Thankfully, she didn't look too ridiculous.

She smoothed her clothing and pulled her hair into a tight bun on top of her head before re-entering the kitchen. Chrom was munching on cereal when she came in," Oh good, it fits."

"Barely," Robin mumbled embarrassedly," You don't think I look stupid, right?"

"Nah, I think it suits you-" He stopped mid sentence and shoved the spoon in his mouth, refusing to make eye contact.

He thought it suited her? What was the supposed to mean? Robin tugged on her sleeve nervously, trying not to look too deeply into what he said. Instead, she pulled a bowl from the cupboard and poured herself a bowl of cereal as well," Do you want to go back to school today?"

Chrom chewed thoughtfully," I don't know. What time is it?"

She glanced over at the clock, surprised to find that it was already around noon," Holy cow, it's already 12:30! I didn't think that we were gone for that long!"

"I guess time slipped away from us," He replied," I should call Lissa and tell her I'm alright," Chrom pulled the phone off of it's dock and slid onto the counter, motioning for Robin to sit next to him. She obeyed and leaned against the phone so that she could hear," Lissa? It's me, Chrom."

_"Chrom? Do you have any idea how worried I was when I entered the lunchroom and didn't find you in there?!"_

He cringed," Sorry about that. I just needed to get out."

_"Robin's probably panicking right now! I told her yesterday that'd you be here today, and when she sees you aren't-"_

The white haired girl giggled," Hi Lissa."

_"Hi Robin-Hold on, Robin?! What are you doing at our house?"_

"He left during first hour, so I went after him to make sure he was okay," She answered quietly," Didn't you notice I wasn't in study hall?"

_"...no, not really. I was busy making up work and...stuff," There was a pause," You two aren't hanky-pankying, right?"_

Robin's face turned as dark as a rose while Chrom yelled," LISSA!"

_"Geez, I was kidding. No need to get worked up big bro. Anyways, I'd better tell Sumia and Lon'qu that Robin's alright. They've been worried sick."_

"Lon'qu?" Chrom mumbled," Why would he be worried? She's safe with me," He scowled," Lissa, I'll be back at school in a little bit. Love you."

_"Wait, really? Well, I'm looking forward to seeing you then! Love you too!"_

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"Cordelia?" The redhead turned around, surprised to find Robin with soaking wet hair and boy's clothes on," I need to talk to you."

Said girl quirked her eyebrow," Uh, I have cheerleading practice in a few minutes and-" She was interrupted when she heard her friend sniffle," Hey, is everything okay? I noticed you weren't in English today."

Robin clenched her fists tightly," I...uh...need to tell you something...in private."

Cordelia bit her lip, watching the white haired girl's eyes water," I suppose I could text Maribelle and tell her that I'll be late-"

"Good," Without warning, she grabbed her wrist and dragged her into a supply closet. Robin triple checked the lock," Can you promise me you won't tell anyone?"

She rose her eyebrow suspiciously," As long as it's not life threatening or something."

Robin nodded and checked the lock one last time before finally blurting out," I have a crush on Chrom!"

It should've felt like a stab to the heart, but it ended up being more of a mixture of depression and...relief? Yes, Cordelia supposed that she was relieved that her suspicions weren't wrong. In the end, she knew that the drum major would fall for Chrom. I mean, who wouldn't? She squeezed her eyes shut," How long?"

Robin blinked in confusion, obviously not expecting that response," What?"

"How long have you two been together?"

"Together?" She shook her head," We're not together. I made a promise, didn't I?" Cordelia gaped at the girl, watching as tears began to leak out of her eyes," I s-said I wouldn't date him without your c-consent, remember? You were my friend l-long before he was my crush."

Now she was experiencing that feeling of someone stabbing her heart; Cordelia obviously liked him a lot, but Robin's feelings towards Chrom were much stronger than anything the redhead could even fathom," Oh my goodness, you're in love with him."

"N-No, I'm not! You can't f-fall out of love, a-and if I love him...," She choked on a sob," then I w-won't find love anywhere else!" Before Robin could stop herself, tears started flowing down her cheeks. The white haired girl fixed her gaze on the ground," I'll j-just find another b-boy-"

Cordelia couldn't take it any longer," No you won't, Robin."

"-and I'll forget all of these feelings I have-"

"Robin, stop."

"-so that you and Chrom-"

The redhead grabbed her friend's shoulders, unintentionally making her wince," Robin, I give you my consent."

"I understand-wait, what?" Robin pulled away and rubbed her arms," I can't make you give up your feelings for mine-"

"Robin, listen to me," Cordelia ordered," You are in love with him, and while I am incredibly touched that you think you would rather preserve our friendship than pursue that love, I think that both you and Chrom would be much happier as a couple."

Her drum major pinched herself, blinking in pure shock," Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

Robin squealed in delight and threw her arms around Cordelia, jumping up and down in excitement," I am forever in your debt! I will make it up to you, I promise!"

The redhead rolled her eyes fondly," Oh? And how are you going to do that?"

"I'm going to set you up with your own boyfriend!"

"Are you now-wait, what?!" Robin gave her a thumbs up before running away," Hold on, Robin! Don't set me up with a boy!"

* * *

**In the last chapter I said I'd show you how Chrom would react to Emmeryn's death; It's pretty dark in a way. You see, he had been trying to keep himself together for Lissa, and to a lesser extent, Frederick. This only made him more stressed in the end, as he expressed (rather angrily) with Robin. I have briefly mentioned before that Chrom has inherited parts of his dad's temper, and he didn't have much control over it at the beginning of the graveyard scene. As soon as he was made aware of it, he broke down. Now that that is out of the way, I'm going to talk a little bit over other things in this chapter! I should start off by saying that Emmeryn is not coming back to life (Sorry). Lon'qu is sort of buddies with Robin at this point, and Chrom is under the impression that they like each other as more than friends. That was why he suddenly decided to go back to school. I didn't want to name Chrom's mother Lucina because of backstory reasons, so I made Lucina her middle name. I added Cordelia in a the end because I'm not sure yet how I want Chrom and Robin to confess to each other, so I made sure to have the redhead's consent first. Cordelia does still have feelings for Chrom, but she knows that Robin has a better chance with him and will be much happier than she would. I added that part a little later than I wrote the rest of the chapter (literally, I had this done in two days. I was that into it). Review Time!  
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**Radio-Blaze:**** Ha, if you thought the last chapter was worst in this story, I'm curious to see how you reacted to this chapter. Yes, the moment between Robin and Lucina was interesting to write, because now she has saved both her parents and her aunt (go Lucina!). I actually didn't think to relate saving her mother instead of Emmeryn together until I wrote the line where she confesses that to Noire. I'm incredibly glad I did, though! The two have a sisterly bond because their parents are really close, so it makes sense that they stick together in the future (I will say that not all the future kids know where the others are). I felt kind of bad making Raimi the villain again because she becomes decent after you beat her in the video game, but my version of her is more revenge ridden. Plus, it gave me the chance to give Lon'qu huge character development! And yes, the mark (at least in my opinion) is much worse in this story. Thanks for the comment!  
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**Amy47101: ****Well, y****ou'll (probably) get Stahl Cordelia ****in this story (Tharja's already married. Sorry). Ha, sorry about your long lost younger brother/lost love interest. If you've seen some of the other characters they've introduced, the Cyrus guy (if that's his name. The one that's with you either way) seems sort of interesting to me. Yes, I've seen that! I also saw that they have a male troubledor! I'm cool with Gregor marrying whoever, but I don't use him very much when I'm actually playing. Yup, I'm teetering with the EmmyXGangrel, but I will say now that Gangrel will NOT die in this version because...well, who would kill him? Not Chrom. I mean, the guy's only 18, he's not going to murder someone. Panne is not with Henry, as you guessed, but she is with someone that I have not written very much about yet. See if you can guess! Thanks for commenting!  
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**The weasel is MINE XP: DOUBLE REEDS UNITE! We don't have any bassoons in my band (yet, some people might switch over into it). What always happens with me is that I'll have my reed in my mouth and people will come up to me and say "Oh my gods, are you smoking?". Some people think I should paint mine to look like a cigarette, but that would get me in a lot of trouble...Yay, Chrobin chapter! This one was sad too, but...you know. Thank you! **

**Moonlight's Glow: Yay! A new reader! I already adore you! I'm so happy I encouraged you to try and finish the game, IT IS SUCH A GOOD GAME (literally, it's the only one I really play. I've beat it about three times already because I only play hard mode with casual (this time I'm doing hard with Classic)). I felt sort of bad about the colorguard size, because being in colorguard myself, this would be incredibly small! Our squad has about ten people in it (I think...I dunno, new kids are coming up). The only reason I have two is because if I added more members, they would have to learn an incredibly complicated routine early on, and Anna was the only one I could picture with the work ethic because of her backstory. I might add another one in later, though. I'm so happy when people disagree with my ships but are still able to enjoy the story! I mean, some my ships are pretty weird, so I didn't expect many people to like them in the first place. There is a focus on the oboe because I play it, so it's easier for me to explain how to play it when Markel has to teach Robin (or reteach). I haven't done much with the bracelets yet, but they will play in much later when love is in the air. Thanks, the lockdown drill was something I planned early on in the story developement. I'm glad you liked it!  
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**Okay guys, important message time: Do you want the next chapter to be Emmeryn's funeral, or preparation for Districts? I honestly have no clue which path I want to take, so I'm going to let you guys help me decide! Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	16. Chapter 16 Sunlight on a Dark Day

**Hey guys. Sorry if this chapter isn't top form; I have exams this week. I did take up the suggestion to write the funeral chapter, though, because that was a popular vote. While this chapter is about a funeral, it isn't very sad. I figured that Emmeryn wouldn't want a dreary funeral, so I made this chapter more lighthearted. And if you're still reading this foreword, there is a pairing that becomes cannon in this story at the very end of the chapter. Happy reading!  
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**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

Robin had never been to a funeral, and frankly, she didn't want to go to one in the first place. It was the Saturday after the terrorist attack, and school was scheduled to start back up on Monday. While she wished things would go back to normal, she knew they wouldn't. If that wasn't bad enough, her sweatshirt had been stolen at the Grimleal attack, and she was surrounded by this overwhelming sense of unease. In the end, she decided that it was probably a sign that she should go through school without wearing the forsaken thing anymore.

Still, she felt strangely empty as she place on her black thigh length dress. It helped that the dress had long sleeves, and the lacey texture made it very pretty. Sumia had allowed her to borrow the dress while opted to wear simple black dress with slightly puffed sleeves. The brunette sighed from her spot on the couch as she watched her friend plop down next to her," Do you think I should make them another pie?"

"Honestly, I'm not even sure they ate the first one."

"Ugh, you're probably right. People hear the word rhubarb and decide they don't like it before they even have a taste," She grumbled," How are you feeling?"

Robin shrugged," Better than I was on Monday. It just doesn't feel real, you know?"

The brunette hummed in agreement," My parents are coming. They were worried half to death when they heard the news and threatened to drag me to whatever town they're living in. The only reason they allowed me to stay is because I explained that you're my roommate, and I can't just leave you homeless."

"Do they know that your roommate is an amnesiac with a mysterious past that constantly finds herself in trouble?"

Sumia scoffed," You don't find trouble; trouble finds you."

"Oh ha ha," She glanced down at her watch," It's about time to go. Are we taking the evil creation you call a bike?"

"It's not evil, you're just a scaredy cat," She teased. Robin stuck out her tongue and grabbed her purse, following her roommate outside. The two had agreed to keep a light mood in order to make the day go by easier. They had decided to stay away from topics that included the Grimleal, the way Emmeryn died, and Sumia learned early on not to ask about why Robin disappeared from school on Friday.

The duo hopped on the bike and peddled across town to the church near the cemetery where the funeral would be taking place. Unlike most stereotypes, it was bright and sunny outside. In fact, the sun's radiance seemed to rival Emmeryn herself.

Many people, students and friend alike, gathered to attend the funeral. There were some people that Robin recognized, but most of them were unfamiliar faces that claimed to know the oldest Exalt. Sumia had somehow disappeared into the crowd, leaving the drum major to blindly try and navigate herself.

Before she could stop herself, she ran straight into another woman. The auburn haired female tumbled over, spilling the contents of her bag,"...How discomposing."

Robin cringed and bent into her knees to help collect the person's things," That looked like a pretty bad spill...Miriel?" The woman from her GOTSA introduction meeting glanced up curiously, trying to remember the face," Are you hurt?"

Miriel shrugged," A minor contusion. Benign."

"Everything you were carrying went flying," She started scooping items off the ground to avoid them getting stepped on," I see your pencils, some papers, a... What is this? A book?" Robin picked up a soft green journal," A diary?"

The woman practically ripped it out of her grasp and hugged it protectively," Unhand that, madam!"

The white haired girl held her hands up," Sorry! I didn't realize it was so important."

"Important?" The professor tilted her head," Hmm..."

"Miriel?"

She tucked the book away into her bag," I suppose it does bear some import, yes. It's a lodestar, of sorts. One that points the way to the truth."

Robin, who had found her love for books when Sumia shared her vast collection, clasped her hands together," Wow. Who wrote it? A famous author or something?"

Miriel shook her head," Not famous at all, no. The author was Emmeryn. We were close compatriots in high school."

She didn't know that the two had been friends," Ah, that explains why it's so precious to you. Still, that's amazing. Were you two best friends?"

"What is the impetus for your inquiry?" The woman asked as she got to her feet.

While she had a pretty vast vocabulary, it was a bit harder to interpret that sentence," Impetus for my...You mean, why do I ask?" Robin tugged on her sleeve," I don't know. ...I'm curious? Wouldn't most people be?

Miriel nodded," An automatic reaction to conversational stimulus. I see..."

Once again, she was at a bit of a loss," Um, did I say something strange?"

"Curious, perhaps. Meriting closer study, certainly. Spontaneous reactive curiosity. Fascinating. But what is the underlying mechanism?"

"...I really think you're reading too much into this."

The auburn haired woman opened her mouth to say something, but a tug on her pants interrupted her," Laurent? Did you wander off from your father again?"

The one year old held his arms up, motioning to be held. Miriel smiled fondly and scooped her son up, giving Robin a farewell wave. The white haired girl watched them leave, finding herself alone once again. By this point, people were starting to file in the church and take their seats. Robin grip on her sleeve tightened as she followed them, trying to find a friend to sit by.

It wasn't much of a surprise that she found an empty seat next to Donnel. Unlike the rest of the guests, the best he could dress was to wear a pair of worn dark slacks and an overly large black shirt on. As usual, his coppery colored baseball hat was fastened on his head," Hey Donnel! Do you mind if I sit by you?"

The freshman gaped at her," Really? Don't 'cha have other friends to sit by?"

She shrugged," I didn't know Emmeryn very well, and I feel that those who were closer to her should sit closer to her. That, and I haven't gotten the chance to have a proper conversation with you."

"Well, I can't argue with that," The white haired girl smiled in relief and seated herself next to him. Since the church was filling up fast, it didn't take long for the ceremony to start. The priest, Libra's uncle, lead the group in a few prayers before allowing people to come up and talk. It wasn't very surprising to find Miriel was the first to talk, and Frederick spoke briefly afterwards. A few of her college friends told stories and shared their regrets as well. It was only when Chrom started talking that Robin paid full attention.

The blue haired boy took to the podium and cleared his throat," I should start off by saying I'll never be the person Emm was. After my mom died, she made sure that we were in good hands while she finished college, and then she took Lissa and I in once she got a job," He ran a hand through his hair," Honestly, I had no idea what I was going to do after she died. My first thoughts went to Lissa, and I put her needs before mine. I put my feelings and needs aside so that I knew she would be okay. It was only yesterday that I discovered that the way I was handling things was wrong. I'm glad I was able to take care of Lissa and help her heal, but I was putting away my own needs. I don't know if I'd even be here if it wasn't for my best friend, Robin. She helped me realize that I don't need to be perfect. I'm so lucky to have her, but she made me think; how did Emm get through mom's death? She always kept herself together for Lissa and I. I guess that goes to show that she's so much stronger than I'll ever be...but," Even though she was lost in the crowd, Robin knew his eyes were on her,"...maybe together we can be something more. She will live through our actions, and if we fight for peace and love like she believed, I think we can keep families from losing their parents or siblings. It's like what Emm told me a long time ago, We shouldn't feel anger towards those who have taken things from us. Instead, we should focus our energy on preventing it from happening to someone else. I will never stop loving Emm, and I'm so happy to see a room full of people the will always love her as well. Thank you," He nodded at the audience and made his way back to his seat, only to get tackled into a hug by his sister.

The rest of the ceremony went by rather quickly, and before she knew it, Robin was leaning against one of the walls of the church. She wasn't exactly sure how she got there, but in the flurry of everyone making a move to exit, she had plopped herself down. Some of her fellow students would briefly say hello before being carted away by their parents. Eventually, even Chrom found his way to her. For some reason, his brow was furrowed and he looked incredibly troubled," Oh, there you are! I was starting to get a little worried."

"Of course I came," Did he honestly think she wouldn't? Sure, she had only known them for a month, but Emmeryn had done so much for her in that time span. It would be more surprising if she didn't come. Robin would've commented on that, but her friend seemed nervous about something," Are you alright?"

He shook his head," Not really. Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all."

Chrom smiled and slid down next to her, leaning his head so that it was rested on her shoulder. He was quiet for a little bit, watching as people traveled from his older sister's coffin to the churchyard. Despite the peaceful environment, he seemed incredibly tense. Suddenly, the blue haired boy gently reached for her hand and squeezed it," Please stay by me for the rest of the day, okay?"

Robin blinked in surprise," What? Why? Not that I don't want to, but I know that you probably want to spend some time with Lissa and Frederick-"

"My dad is here."

She froze mid sentence and turned to face him, analyzing him to see if he was serious," Are you sure?"

He nodded," He was allowed to come to mom's funeral, despite him being the one that killed her. It's not surprising that he wormed his way out of jail to come here. After the ceremony ended, Lissa and I were talking to one of Emmeryn's old friends when we saw him. He didn't say anything; he just smirked. It was at that moment that I knew I had to get Lissa to either Frederick, Flavia, or Basilio to keep her out of his path."

Robin furrowed her eyebrows," If that's true, why aren't you with her? Wouldn't you feel safer if you knew where she was?"

"She's with Frederick, and I know that he'd rather die than let another one of us perish."

"That doesn't answer my question."

A faint blush tickled his cheeks," Well...Uh...Someone has to keep an eye on you and make sure you're safe."

Her heart stopped, and butterflies erupted in her stomach," O-Oh. I can take care of myself, Chrom," Damn, what was she saying? Did she want him to leaver her alone? She loved spending time with him, and here she was pushing him away. Damn her pride.

Chrom waited a little bit to answer, mulling over the right words to say. He had said stupid things in the past before he knew Robin well, and he didn't want to make her upset," Believe me, I'm well aware of your abilities. You're a quick thinker in a fight because you can analyze the foe's weakness in a matter of seconds. I don't question your bravery either, because I've seen you run headfirst into a battle that you could've been seriously hurt in," His face slowly turned serious," The one time you slipped up, you got stitches in your head and a concussion that kept you out of school for three days. You could've died-"

"But I didn't-"

"That's because they hesitated," He interrupted," You're a defenseless teenage girl. The only way they would've killed you would have been if you were a threat to them, which you weren't. Kid or not, if my dad sees so much as a glimpse of that mark or hears so much as a whisper about it, he will come straight to you and murder you without hesitation. For my sake, please promise that you'll stay by me for the rest of today."

Robin smiled softly, amazed by how much her best friend had changed over the past month. When she first met him, he was a confident leader who seemed to have a knack for making a fool of himself in front of her. Now, he was taking responsibility of his younger sister and facing his problems without getting in a fight. Despite his temper and his slip ups, there was nowhere Robin felt safer than she did with him. The white haired girl scooped both of his hands into hers, grinning reassuringly," Hey Chrom? It's moments like this that make me positive you won't turn out like your father did-oomph!" Before she could finish, he pulled her into a tight hug," Chrom?"

"This means you'll stay by me, right?"

"Of course."

A thousand things could've happened at that moment; Chrom's father could've shown up, ripped them apart, and murdered her. The Grimleal could've jumped out of the shadows and initiated a surprise attack that would kill them all. Cordelia could've walked in and assumed that they had just become a couple, and she could've let it slip about Robin's crush on him. Instead, the world around them let them have one unbothered moment of peace. Chrom eventually released her and settled his head back onto her shoulder," Thank you."

"I should be the one thanking you," She felt her cheeks warm up," A-Actually, I have something I'd like to give you."

"Oh?" He quirked an eyebrow," What is it?"

Her heart was hammering in her chest, and Robin was positive he could hear it. She pushed her nerves away and pulled a purple bracelet from her wrist, handing it to the boy," I know it's a girly color and all, but I...Uh...," She took a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut," I want you to have it."

His eyes trailed from her to the bracelet, a grin gracing his lips," I'd love to accept this. It's kind of like having you with me wherever I go," He held his wrist out and allowed her to tie it around him," It's not that girly, either. Purple is the closest color to blue, in a way."

He obviously had no idea how much his words were causing her heart to pound," I'm glad."

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"Might I beg a moment of your time?"

Panne glanced up from her spot in the grass and rose her eyebrow at Libra," You get a moment. State your business, holy man."

The blonde man nodded in appreciation," I wanted to thank you."

"You owe me nothing."

"But I do," He started," You helped save Mrs. Exalt from assassination on the first day of school. As an Ylissean student and a man in her debt, I owe you my gratitude."

Panne barely reacted," I saved no one. Emmeryn only lived long enough to fall into the next snare."

"…...You weren't in the band room either, then?"

This piqued her interest," I suppose you weren't there either."

"Ah, I fear we both witnessed it," Libra stated sadly," I was coming back from a dentist appointment, and I saw it all happen from the parking lot. I didn't hear her words, but I saw how they affected the people around her."

Panne toyed with one of her braids," My foster mother had caught a cold, and she didn't get better until midday. She convinced me to return to school and make up my work for that day, and on my way in..."

"I see that what happened to her pains you even now," He sat himself down next to her," I, too, still grieve. I cannot help but feel that I failed her somehow."

"What, then? You would have the two of us sit around and feel pointless guilt?"

Libra shook his head," No, I merely thought to–"

"You are human. I am Taguel. Linger near me and you'll be viewed with suspicion by your kind."

"I had forgotten about your Taguel origins. I still feel sorrow for the day the Grimleal murdered your trial in hope for making up the lives lost by Mr. Exalt. Those who survived turned to a life of crime, yet here you are," He turned to face her," You're worried for my reputation, aren't you? That's very gallant."

Panne growled," Watch your words, man-spawn. Who says I haven't done deeds I regret," She abruptly got to her feet," My foster mother is here. I hope you get over your grief," With that said, she left as quickly as she could.

Libra titled his head curiously, watching her as she entered her parent's car," I feel that there is grief you hold as well, Panne Taguel."

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Anna had somehow managed to sneak away from her sisters in hopes to find either Robin or Tiki. It didn't take her long to seek out the drum major, but she had fallen asleep curled up with Chrom, so she left without disturbing them (actually, she took a picture, but she promised herself that it wouldn't go into the school paper). It was laughable to discover Tiki asleep in the lawn, but not shocking; Her friend was incredibly sleepy.

So, she took to wandering through the graveyard and looking at names. There were some people looking over the graves of lost ones, but it was surprising to find Hewitt among them. After formally meeting him in the park, she had tried to talk to him as much as possible. He was warming up to her little by little, but that was all that was important to her," Hi Hewitt! Whose grave are you looking at?"

He jumped in shock, but eventually tilted his head towards the tombstone. The redhead took this as an invitation to read it aloud," Luka Landon Smith? Who is that?"

Hewitt didn't answer for a few minutes, but when he did, it was not what she was expecting," I don't miss him."

"Him? Who is he?"

"...My father."

Anna clasped her hands behind her back and tilted back and forth curiously," Oh? Why don't you miss him? Was he a bad person?"

"Yes."

"Oh," She felt bad for him, and she hoped that his dad wasn't as bad as Chrom's was," What about your mom? Does she miss him?"

Hewitt turned his intense gaze onto her, causing a shiver to run down her spine," I never knew my mother."

"Did she die?"

"No."

Anna frowned, assuming that he was implying that his mother left him," I'm sorry. I probably seem like this huge idiot because I always complain about how my mother has converted my sisters into younger versions of her, and-"

He sighed and turned to her," You're not an idiot. You don't have to become like your mother in order to be happy. Just be yourself."

"You say that like it's easy."

The dark haired boy only shook his head," All the hardest things seem easier when said aloud, and the easiest things to think are the hardest things to say. Words are only there to cause hindrances."

"You say that, but that is the most poetic thing I've ever heard someone say."

His ears turned pink and he coughed awkwardly," Uh, thanks."

Anna giggled and linked her hand with his," Come on, let's stop looking at graves and go socialize!"

"I don't like talking-"

"Don't worry! I'll do all the talking for both of us!"

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Kellam couldn't believe how invisible he was. Before the ceremony, six people sat on him and eight ran straight into his back. He had hoped he would gain more presence afterwards, but fate had other plans in mind. Just as he was pulling his signature orange and white jacket on to go home, a group of kids ran past, one effectively knocking him onto his bottom. Thankfully he wasn't hurt, but the new hole in his pants was going to get him in a lot of trouble with his parents-

"You mean this little tear? I can patch that myself."

He blinked, astounded that not only had he spoken aloud, but someone had heard him. He anxiously got to his feet to greet the person, surprised to see the mellaphonist, Cherche, standing behind him. Kellam's jaw dropped," You can see me?!"

She tilted her head curiously," Why wouldn't I? Oh never mind that; I have a sewing kit in my purse, and I can patch you up in no time!"

He gawked at her," You wouldn't mind?"

Cherche giggled," I wouldn't have mentioned it if I wasn't offering, Kellam."

"Wow, thanks," The two made their way over to one of the pews and sat down. The rose haired girl pulled her supplies out of her bag and pulled his knee, starting to work on stitching it back together," I'm terrible at sewing. last time, I nearly took my eye out with a needle."

"Well, I'm sure there are plenty of other things you can do well."

The brunette shrugged," I guess. But I was always jealous of folks who knew how to stitch their own clothes. My parents get super mad whenever I ruin my clothes because they don't have the time to go out and buy me knew ones. That is, if they notice me. They're always at their job. Work seems to come first with them."

She frowned," That's unfortunate, but I'm surprised a cute boy like you doesn't have a girl to do it for him."

Kellam gulped, suddenly feeling overwhelmed," C-cute?!"

"Surely you know how ridiculously adorable that jacket of yours is!" Cherche gushed," The girls in school must have fawn all over you!"

He was still adjusting to the fact that she was unaware other people didn't notice him," My armor is...adorable?"

Cherche snipped the last seam shut and stood up, zipping her purse closed," Of course! Anyway, I must be off. Don't want to be late for Minerva, my dog. We walk together every afternoon. Then I have to play Minerva The Second, my mellophone. I might brush up on Minerva The Great, my French horn, as well. I'll see you at school on Monday!"

She waved cutely before exiting the building, leaving Kellam in a state of shock," Wait a second! What's this about my armor?!"

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Night had fallen over Ylisse, ending the day of Emmeryn's funeral. Lon'qu had been assigned to guard Mr. Exalt the entire time. The man was sickeningly smug and kept making comments about how this was some sort of karma towards his wife. He tried to approach his children on several occasions, but neither him or Basilio would let him get close.

The man stayed as long as he could, making the most of his freedom. He was the last one to leave the church after his oldest daughter got buried, and he made sure to spit on the grave in front of his children. Frederick had to restrain Chrom from fighting his father, even though everyone believed the man deserved a good beating.

By the time the jail police had returned to escort Mr. Exalt back to the prison, the sun was setting and a crescent moon was low in the sky. Basilio tried to convince to is protégé to go home and get some rest, but Lon'qu insisted on helping him finish up the pile of paperwork that was growing on the chief's desk.

When the boy was finally on his way back to his apartment, the sky was a deep blue and the stars were sprinkled in the sky. Despite how tired he was, Lon'qu was glad he volunteered to watch Mr. Exalt. It would be a lie if he said he hadn't seen Robin's mark, and if the murderer had somehow figured out about it...the brown haired boy shook the the thought away. He didn't want to think about what happened to Ke'ri because of her mark.

Instead of heading straight home like he originally planned, Lon'qu continued to walk on in a vain attempt to clear his head. The day had gone by smoothly without anything horrible happening. He had briefly spoken to Robin, who had Chrom glaring at him like a jealous puppy over her shoulder. Despite his annoying antics, Vaike was beginning to grow on him, and he went through the entire day without feeling the urge to strangle him.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a sniffle. The brunette rose his eyebrow suspiciously and glanced down the driveway, surprised to see a familiar pink haired girl huddled onto the ground. He almost ran to her side, immediately checking her pulse. It only took him a minute to realize that Olivia was not hurt, but in a deep sleep. He checked the surroundings, curious to why the colorguard-ist was sleeping outside. There didn't seem to be anyone around them, so she couldn't have been mugged. Lon'qu's eyes traveled from the sleeping girl to the door. Had she been locked out?

The boy ignore the nerves rolling in his stomach as he scooped her into her arms, ultimately deciding that he would let her stay at his apartment instead of waiting outside of her doorstep. He wondered why her family had locked the door when she wasn't home. Had they forgotten, or was there something more serious going on? Honestly, he didn't like either answer.

"Lon'qu?"

He glanced down at the drowsy girl in his arms," It's alright. You can go back to sleep."

Olivia almost took his suggestion, but something stopped her," What's happening?"

"I saw you sleeping outside, and instead of letting you freeze, I figured I'd let you stay at my apartment for the night. Do you have a problem with that?"

Instead of bursting into flustered stutters like she would do on any other day, she only nuzzled against his chest and let out a sleepy," No," Before dozing off again. Lon'qu smirked, wondering why her family would forget someone so cute-

Cute? Did he really think she was cute? That was...new. On any other occasion, it would be both horrible and terrifying, yet he didn't feel either of those things around her. Was he really falling for a woman? Surprisingly enough, it wasn't that much of a shock to him. There was no other explanation to why Olivia, aside from occasionally Robin and Flavia, was the only girl he could talk to without getting nervous.

What about Ke'ri? He had always sworn that he'd never love another girl after what happened to her, but Olivia was almost perfect for him. Maybe if he protected Olivia, it would be like a promise; he'd never let another person close to him get hurt ever again.

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It was one of those nights where Nowi, due to lack of sleep and stress, had snuck into Ricken's house again. Since she came a little earlier this time, the two had started an intense game of Rival; Red Dawn. The video game revolved around a mage who would travel from town to town, collecting things called Dragon Stones. There was a two player option, so he had invited Nowi to join in on the fun.

That was three hours ago.

Ricken glanced over at the clock, surprised to find that it was already midnight," Holy cow! That game was so fun, I didn't even notice the time pass by! I'm glad we got to play it."

"Me too!" She beamed. Nowi moved her avatar around the screen, exploring the forest in the video game. They had almost run out of portions, but they had come across a town just in time to restock. If that wasn't lucky enough, the town had a celebration going on, and the two reached the jackpot with all the supplies they collected ," My favorite part was the festival! It was like the whole village was celebrating!"

The freshman nodded in agreement," Even though they didn't really know who we were, they gave us so much food. It was like a harvest festival, but much bigger!"

Nowi gasped," I forgot about the harvest festival! I haven't been to one in ages!" He eyes glazed over as she became lost in thought," Oh, I love festivals! People are laughing, and dancing, and eating tasty food!"

"You like it when you're surrounded by lots of people, don't you?" From what he had seen, his crush was extremely social. It didn't matter who she was talking to, it only mattered if she had someone to chat with.

The green haired girl fiddled with her bracelets, adopting a more demure personality to respond," When I was young, I had no one to talk to. I'm not sure if you know this or not, but I'm an orphan. My parents and I used to own a circus show, but they lost their lives during a risky performance stunt. After that, I moved to the orphanage in Chron'sin, and all the foster families that tried to adopt me were horrible people. They heard about the great feats my parents did, and they expected me to be just as talented as them. Sometimes they forced me to do dangerous things, like juggling knives or walking on a high tightrope. It became so bad, that by the time I turned 12, I refused to see anymore people that would want to adopt me and isolated myself. It got so lonely I thought I was the only person in the world. Thankfully my cousin, Tiki, and her family moved into the area, and they let me live with them, but I still have nightmares over what used to happen. That's why whenever I see a party going on, I just HAVE to join in."

Ricken didn't know that her backstory was so deep, and he wanted to make up for bringing up her past," You don't get lonely now, though, do you?"

Her frown was automatically replaced by a cheery grin," Oh, no! Now I have lots of friends, and there's always someone to talk to! Like you! And Cherche! And all the other nice people in the band!" Suddenly, Nowi's face fell," But..."

"But what?"

"But someday, everyone is going to leave and go their separate ways, aren't they? And when that happens, I'll be alone again, just like before."

Ricken shook his head furiously," No way! I'm not going to let that happen! In fact, when the school finishes, why don't we go on a tour of all the festivals we can find during summer vacation?"

This seemed to grab her attention," Like, all around the whole country?"

"Yeah! We'll travel to every last corner of the map! Every single day would be a new festival with music and candied apples for all! Just like in the video game!"

"Oh my gosh! We could try to see every festival in the world!" She lunged forward and grabbed his hands in hers," Promise me, Ricken! Promise you'll take me on this tour!"

Ricken tried not to look at their interlocked hands, fearing that it would make him turn as red as a cherry," It's a promise!"

It was the moment that he saw her eyes shining with excitement that he knew this was it. He had called Dimitri a few days earlier, asking for advice on how to finally confess to Nowi. His older brother had simply stated that the moment he should tell her how he feels is the moment she looks genuinely happy. While that didn't make much sense to Ricken, he decided that now was as good as a time as any. His hand went towards his class ring, fiddling with it nervously before pulling it off altogether. He gently grabbed Nowi's hand, opening it up and placing the ring in her palm," This is my most treasured object. See this here? It's the year my older brother graduated. And the reason I brought this today is because I wanted to...," He took a deep breath and squeezed her hand shut,"..I wanted to give it to you.

Nowi's focus was completely off the game by this point," A-are you asking me what I think you are?"

This was it. There was no going back now. Ricken took a deep breath, mustering up all the courage he could before looking her dead in the eye," Yes...I really like you, Nowi, and I want you to be my girlfriend."

"B-but, I'm going to get older and older and have to leave!" Her gaze shifted onto the ring in her hands," I'm immature, Ricken. I'm going to look a lot younger than I truly am for the rest of your life. Do you honestly want to fall in love with someone who is basically a child?" She stuttered out the last part, afraid to hear what his answer was.

Ricken, on the other hand, was baffled," Nowi, you do realize that I am fourteen, right? We're both immature in our own ways, and that what I love about you! It doesn't matter how we look! It's what's in our hearts that counts. Do you think you could still like me even though I'm only a freshmen?"

The green haired girl sniffled, but the smile on her face was the brightest one he had ever seen. Suddenly, she tackled him onto the ground, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and nuzzling her face into the crook of his neck," Of course I could! I promise I will! I'll never stop loving you, no matter how old we get!"

Love. She loved him. Ricken would've cheered if it wouldn't wake up his parents," Good! Because I certainly won't stop loving you!"

Nowi moved her head up so that both her forehead and her nose was squished against his. With a faint blush on her cheeks (and a huge amount of blushing on Ricken's part), she pecked her lips against his and giggled," Yaaaaay! I'm never going to be lonely again!"

* * *

**I want to start this off by saying how much I love all of you. In the span of two days, I got six comments over my last chapter, bringing up the total comments to 50 (I literally went around bragging to all of my friends and my brothers). You guys are amazing, and I adore you. So, it was Nowi and Ricken that got together first! I almost didn't put them in this chapter because I wanted to put Lon'qu and Olivia in, but I ended up doing it anyways. I have no regrets. If everything turns out right, another couple will get together in the next chapter. See if you can guess who it is! So, in my original plan for this chapter, I had Chrom's dad figure out Robin was a Grimleal and go crazy, but I decided to cut it because I didn't want Robin to be put in danger again (Seriously, she almost died the monday before. Chrom would go bonkers with grief). Instead, I just picked random things to put in, and I guess it worked out. Miriel is married to the man villager because she is much older than everyone in the band, and it'd be really weird if she married someone else...but that means we get baby Laurent! Panne and Libra got to talk a little bit, but she got a bit snippy at him. Hewitt is the most complex OC I have, other than possibly May. No spoilers beyond that. I have gone a little bit deeper into Olivia's story, but not too far. She got locked out of her house, which is weird because she wasn't home...why would her parents lock her out? Hmmm...And, of course, Ricken and Nowi are a couple now! I might put Dimitri in for funsies at Districts or something, because I mention him a lot. What do you guys think? OH MY GOSH, I'M HORRIBLE! Okay, so I was a few sentences into writing a response for Amy47101 when I realized I didn't mention Kellam. I literally forgot him. I'm a horrible human being. I'm not even kidding. Anywho, I pulled most of that support with him and Cherche right out of the game. She notices him! Seriously! It's great! Okay, now it's Review Time!  
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**Amy47101: I love them too! Ugh, I'm trying not to look too much up because I don't want spoilers. Haha, it would make sense for Henry to do Gangrel in, especially with what's going to be in the next chapter with him, but I won't say anything. You probably know (this is the moment I realized I forgot to put Kellam in the description...oops) who I'm putting with Panne now. I had to wait until Emmeryn died to get them to start talking. No, it's cool, you didn't miss much with Sully and her potential boyfriend! It's really hard to write the person I'm pairing her with, so I haven't found a way to put them in. I almost had her get together with the person in this chapter, but that would be weird because it would've happened at the funeral...I have a love/hate relationship with Cordelia because it's hard to see if she'd be extremely jealous or put aside her feelings for her friend. In the end, I decided on the latter because I don't want to villainize her. On the theory you had, have you read _Embers_? I don't remember who the author is, but I freaking love that fanfic, and that's the approach she took with her Cordelia. I love the idea (it is freaking brilliant and deep), but I didn't want any copyright or stuff. She will have the realization that Sumia had at the beginning when she realizes that Chrom is actually a huge (and slightly scary (spoilers for ahead of time)) dork. Thank you for commenting!  
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**Moonlights Glow: I agree, it was a good mixture of sadness and fluff. You're reasoning behind that idea of the funeral is very solid, thank you for the feedback! Now it's time to go back into marching band for Districts. With our colorguard, we're going to have 10 (9 girls and 1 boy!), and upperclassmen get to do both flagwork and rifle if they choose. With the teacher, I read up what things not to say to a person who had just experienced a death. The outline for her comment was one of those. Yes, I have shown everyone that Chrom can be incredibly scary if he wants to be. I honestly didn't think about that until I saw this post on tumblr that was along the lines of "Chrom is sweet and nice, but he must be terrifying on the battlefield". Basically, I have found Chrom's flaw; his temper. I briefly mentioned early on in the story (probably in the first chapter) that Chrom liked getting into fights occasionally. He had taken boxing lessons from Frederick when he was younger in order to protect himself or Lissa if either Grimleal or his dad came back to haunt him. He got a majority of his strength from that. Yes. They are going to be horrible in trying to set up Cordelia and Stahl. The first time I played Fire Emblem, I collected everyone except Gangrel because he died. Every time since has been speed runs with new strategies and stuff. Thanks for commenting!**

**The weasel is MINE XP: Don't worry, I think that Say'ri is going to be a bassoon (if I said that before. I have the memory of a flea), and she should be joining after Districts (Districts represents the end of the first war, and what's after that is like the second war). Robin the matchmaker is going to become big, because they are basically matchmakers in the game. Cordelia is her first victim. Thanks!**

**The-Bored-Bookworm: Hello Lovely! I'm happy to have you onboard this oddball Marching band Gang war AU! There is so much Chrobin from this point on, I'm not even kidding. She gave her bracelet to him in this chapter! Yay! Aww, thank you! I'm glad you like my writing style, it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! Marching band AUs are the best thing, and no one can tell me otherwise (unless there is a Newsies AU somewhere. This was almost a Newsies AU.) Thank you for the feedback, I feel that this was a good chapter to help closure for Emmeryn. Thank you!  
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**utdfan22: Ooh, I've never met you before! Hello! I'm glad you like the pacing, I feel that there is a good balance of action and regular teenage stuff. I agree that it would've been weird if an 18 year old went and murdered someone publicly (Chrom would've killed him anyways if he found out). I do see that there are some odd spots (Emmeryn's speech was so hard to write, because only a few of the Shepherds were watching). I'm happy that the ingame events are translating nicely. I also find it slightly weird if I wrote only relationship stuff because friendship and loyalty is a huge aspect of the game. Thank you so much for you feedback, it was a nice balance of suggestions and compliments! **

**Radio-Blaze: I gave myself permission, thank you very much. I hope you finished your paper, but I don't blame you. The chapter was feel heavy (and really fun to write!). Heartbreak Chrobin is very sad, but also very cute. YES, YOU PICKED UP ON THE COMMENT HE MADE! Seriously, I have so much subtly in this story, it's not even funny. I'm going to tell you the obvious one in this chapter, being," Blue is the closest color to purple". Yes, Chrom, you are smooth. I hinted at something in the last chapter, and no one has seemed to pick up on it yet. It's going to be tricky to find, though, but I will point it out when the moment comes. Poor Lucina probably thinks her mommy hates/is scared of her. Lon'qu is my favorite, even though I have never married him. I love his relationship with Robin. StahlxCordelia moments are probably going to start coming up at Districts, but they are the only couple that I know exactly how they're getting together. **

**I love you guys so much, it's not even funny. The next chapter shall be up next Saturday, and depending on how my schedule works out, I might move around the posting date so that it could be twice a week. Don't get your hopes up yet, I'm not sure how busy I'll be (and my school Ipad is being taken away, so I'll have to write on either my cruddy laptop or my mom's Ipad. Wish me luck). See you guys next week, and thank you for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	17. Chapter 17 The Winds of Change

**Hey guys! It's summer, and exams are finally over! YAY! I don't want to make the foreword too long because this turned out to be an incredibly long chapter, but I will point out that something very important happens in this chapter. Literally, this is the chapter to read if you are one of those people that will just randomly read the foreword and that's it (though I don't think that anyone does that). See if you can guess what it is! Alright, so it is time to prepare for Districts!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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Despite everything that had just happened that weekend, Robin had the feeling that Chrom was starting to avoid her when Monday morning rolled around. At first, it was just small things like forgetting to bring her coffee and only making small talk during Politics. Then it escalated to him brushing her off at lunch when she tried to talk to him. She figured that it was just a coincidence until band rolled around.

The last thing she expected to see when walking into the room was the white haired boy from Rosanne talking to Frederick. The band teacher noticed his drum major walk in and waved her over," Robin, this is our newest student, Henry Crow. Henry, this is Robin, one of your drum majors. Chrom isn't going to be here today; he said that his history teacher wanted him to stay back and study during this hour."

Robin blinked, her worst fears being confirmed in a matter of seconds; Chrom didn't take history, he took Politics. He was definitely avoiding her. Did he know what the bracelet meant? He probably did, and now he was too disgusted by it to even talk to her.

"I got your sweatshirt back."

She halfheartedly glanced up, only to see that Henry wasn't lying. Robin immediately reached out and snatched it up, hugging it close to her chest. A warm, nostalgic feeling bubbled inside her, helping ease some of the pain," Where did you find it?"

"Gangrel had it, and he was displaying in front of the entire band room," Although there was still a smile present on his face, he darkened slightly," They were bragging about how Mrs. Exalt was finally dead, and how it was the revenge that Plegia needed to pay back for Lissa's murderous father. I liked Mrs. Exalt. She took me out for ice cream once and didn't judge me the entire time. She didn't deserve to die," He gritted out the last part before returning back to his cheery self," So I ditched that crummy old school and transferred here! Frederick said he'd give me the drill and the music, so I'll spend the rest of the day studying it until it's perfect-"

"HENRY!" Without warning, Lissa threw herself on top of the white haired boy, almost knocking him over," What are you doing here?"

Frederick tilted his head to the side, motioning for Robin to follow him. The two made their way into his office, where a large sheet of paper was laid out," My job for you today is to transfer the drill onto this so that the judges can use it during districts. Virion should be coming in soon to help. If you have any questions, which I doubt you will, feel free to ask me."

Virion? What did Virion know about making drill? She frowned, despite not minding the aqua haired boy. Honestly, she only wanted to talk to Chrom and ask him why he was avoiding her. Robin shook the thought out of her head, instead focusing all of her energy on redrawing the drill.

"My, I can practically see the wheels in your head turning."

She barely glanced up from her sheet," Good afternoon, Virion. I assume you're here to help me?"

He nodded and looked over her shoulder," This is impressive. Did you come up with this all by yourself?"

"No, Chr-" Robin bit her lip," No, I didn't."

Virion rose his eyebrow, carefully trying to figure out what the situation was," While I am interested in working with you, I'm more curious to why Chrom isn't here in my place."

"He had to go over something in history."

"But isn't he in our politics-"

"Yes, so that means he's lying," She clenched her pencil tightly, hoping that it would relieve some of the stress building up inside of her," He's avoiding me and I don't know why."

The aqua haired boy hummed, pleased to understand what was going on," I feel that I know what is going on. Chrom isn't very good at expressing his feelings, you see, and it seems that whenever he wants to talk to you about something serious, he avoids it instead. When he wanted to tell you about his past, he wouldn't talk to you for hours beforehand. I assume that you two spoke after the whole fiasco on Friday morning in politics, and he would hardly look at you before that. I don't think he feels any ill-will towards you at all, it's just his way of trying to figure out what to do."

Virion did have some good points, but she wasn't convinced," What do you think he wants to tell me?" She uttered miserably," That he doesn't return my-" Robin froze mid sentence, horror consuming her," Forget what I just said-"

"You like him, don't you?"

The white haired girl cursed herself," Yes, I do. Please don't tell anyone, it's bad enough that he's brushing me off-"

"That's not necessarily what's going on," Virion tried to assure," Who knows? Maybe he returns your feelings. It wouldn't be that surprising, seeing that you two already act like lovebirds."

Robin shook her head," No, he's popular and has a whole fan-club of girls willing to date him. The chances of him choosing a random amnesiac to be his girlfriend is about the same as him asking for a hobo's hand in marriage."

"How could you say something like that? You two are closer than I've ever seen him be with anyone."

"Please stop, Virion. I know that him and I are best friends, but he wouldn't be avoiding me if he knew I liked him and he returned my feelings-" Suddenly, Virion grabbed her arm and pulled the glove off her hand, revealing the Grimleal mark. Robin's eyes widened in horror as she yanked her wrist back," What was that for?!"

"I assume you know what it means because you're hiding it, right?"

The white haired girl cringed," I do, but you can't tell anyone-"

"Everybody in band already knows. You conducted us without gloves for two weeks, do you honestly think we wouldn't notice?" A smirk played on his lips," The meaning of the mark either makes you a gang member or wanted by a gang member, correct?" She nodded suspiciously," This mark represents the you that kicks in whenever danger is present; the you that isn't afraid of anything. Don't get my wrong, it is a lovely balance with the you that is sweet. What I'm asking of you is to look inside of yourself and find the bravery I know you possess. Once you do, confront Chrom and make him tell you his intentions."

Despite the boy being a flowery flirt, he was making more sense than most people in Robin's life. What was stopping her from cornering him and forcing him to admit his feelings, whether they be bad or good? She took a deep breath and rose from her seat," Alright, I'm ready."

"Now?" Virion blurted," But we're only 10 minutes into class-"

"Shut your mouth and step aside."

The Aqua haired boy clamped his mouth shut and followed her orders, giving her a thumbs up as she left. Frederick rose his eyebrow at her as she exited, but she mouthed Going to ask Chrom a question and left before he could interrogate her. The halls were completely empty, motivating her to continue. She finally spotted Chrom sitting in the library with a book. He didn't seem to be reading, because his hands were in his hair and he was tapping his feet anxiously. Without hesitation, Robin marched inside," Chrom! Just the man I wanted to see. We need to talk."

His eyes flew up in horror as he gulped," Robin?"

"I can't believe you ditched band even though we have four days until we leave for Districts...," She paused, watching as the boy stared at her with an odd expression on his face," Chrom? Are you listening to me?"

He snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head," Er, oh. Of course!" She crossed her arms expectantly,"...Actually, no...I kind of had something to...," Chrom slowly rose from his seat, his eyes flickering from her to the door," do!"

Without warning, he pushed past her and escaped the library, leaving her to stand in his dust. Any motivation that she had scraped up was now gone, leaving her with a hollow feeling inside of her. He didn't even want to be in the same room as her anymore.

Had she done something wrong? Robin couldn't think of anything, other than the fact that she had that stupid Grimleal mark on her hand. Was that going to rule her life forever? She shook her head and slowly made her way back to the band room in defeat. Virion questioned her as soon as she arrived, but the only response he could get out of her was a shake of her head. The aqua haired boy frowned, but didn't try to push her anymore. Instead, he kept the subject lighthearted and talked about his undying love for Sully and the chess club that he desperately wanted her to join. She hardly listened the entire time, but the effort was very sweet.

Eventually the bell rang, and she went home with Sumia. Robin amerced herself in her homework and reading, trying desperately to block out the real life problems that she was enduring. She even went to bed earlier than normal, hoping that sleep would eat away at some of the pain. Eventually, she dozed off.

_"This is it! Our final battle! You're one of us, Robin, and no "destiny" can change that. Now let's beat this dastard and be done with it!"_

_Robin held the gun tightly in her hand, trying desperately to hide the fact that she was shaking. Apparently she wasn't doing too good of a job, because Chrom took her hand in his and squeezed it," Don't worry; I'm not going to let anything happen to you."_

_"Gya ha ha! Fools!" The duo flipped around, only to see a tall man with tan skin and unruly black hair with a machine gun at ready," Try all you want! You cannot unwrite what is already written!"_

_Time passed a blur with only the sounds of gunshots playing in the background. When her mind finally cleared up, she saw the machine gun man collapsing onto the ground with an unnerving smirk on his face. Chrom didn't notice and spun around with a bright demeanor. He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted," This isn't over," The man hissed. Suddenly, he pulled out a hand gun and pointed at them," Damn you both!"_

_Before she could process what she was doing, Robin shoved Chrom out of the way and took the hit. She winced and gripped the spot where she had been shot, surprised to find that it was a dart that penetrated her, not a bullet._

_The impact sent a blinding hot flash into her vision, causing her to tumble onto her back. She could faintly hear Chrom scream her name, but the darkness was already trying to consume her brain. Robin almost closed her eyes and let herself pass out, but the thought of letting that man consume her kept her awake._

_Chrom ran to her side and dropped to his knees, placing his hand around her shoulders and scooping her into a sitting position," Are you all right?" She took a deep breath and nodded, allowing him to help her onto her feet. The boy glanced back at the gangster and grinned in relief," That's the end of him. Thanks to you we carried the day," Robin wanted to smile, but suddenly, her vision began to turn red. Her pulse picked up until it was pounding extremely fast, making her slowly lose control of her body," We can rest easy now. At long last...," Chrom's eyes fell on her spasming body, panic immediately swelling in his eyes," ...What's wrong?" She hissed, unaware that her hands were still clamped around her gun. Her best friend seemed unaware of this as well, because he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into a hug," Hey, hang on—"_

_The sound of a gunshot interrupted him, the unpleasant metallic smell of blood accompanying the sound. Robin slowly pulled away from the boy and screamed in horror when she realized that she had accidentally shot him. Without her support, Chrom stumbled backwards, clutching his wound with a painful expression on his face," This is not your—your fault...," He cringed and looked at her dead in the eye with a horrifying amount of wisdom in his eyes," Promise me...you'll escape from this place...," He choked on his own blood, watching as she stood frozen in place. He grimaced and gasped up as much air as he could to utter his last words," Please...go..."_

_Suddenly, his face lost all of the pain and regret it seemed to be harboring. All that was left was a horrifying blank look and and empty shell that was once the boy she had loved. His body collapsed onto the ground, forming a pool of blood around him. He never moved again._

_Robin waited for a few seconds, praying desperately that he would get back onto his feet and leave with her, but he wouldn't. The sound of smug laughter surrounded her, reminding her that if she didn't leave, they would capture her and do what they had been waiting for since the moment she was born. She should've run. Her children needed her. Yet, she couldn't bring herself to move. He was her source of happiness, and if he was gone..._

_Not if; he was gone. Chrom was dead._

A knock at the door woke Robin up. Tears stained her cheeks, her breaths were short and raspy, and she was clutching her sheets for dear life. Her nightmare seemed to be a continuation of the one from her first night, but it was much, much worse. She would've stayed frozen in mortification if the knock hadn't repeated itself. The white haired girl sleepily checked on Sumia, who was completely out, and got up to answer the door. It was pitch black outside, and the clock read 12:45, so whatever was going on must've been important.

When she opened the door, she was surprised to find Lissa. The blonde girl was panting, still in her pajamas, and tears were flowing from her eyes," I c-can't find Chrom!"

Robin's eyes widened in panic," Wait, what?!"

"He's not in his room to the house!"

The white haired girl cursed under her breath and ran her hand through her hair, fear consuming every part of her. Was he dead? Was he going to die, just like her in dream? She pulled her sweatshirt on over her head and pushed past Lissa," Wake up Sumia and stay here. I'm going to look for him."

"But Robin-"

The drum major ignored her and bolted out the door, going to the first place she hoped he would be. Robin ran the entirety across town in her pajama shorts without shoes and sped into the Exalt's backyard, heading straight into the forest. It took her about five minutes of running aimlessly to find his favorite spot, but he wasn't there. Terror clutched her heart as she bolted right back out of the woods, trying to figure out another place where he might be. He wouldn't go to school, especially since that was the least understanding of all places-

Wait a minute; when he left school last Friday, he went straight for the graveyard. Robin rubbed her cramping side and took off towards the cemetery, tears pouring down her cheeks. What would she do if he died? She didn't want to be in a world without him in it, even if he didn't return her feelings.

After another fifteen minutes of dashing across town, she made it to the graveyard. Much to her distress, the gates were locked shut. She swore loudly before taking a few steps back, prepping herself to do something she would highly regret later. With a running start, she jumped onto the fence, trying her best to climb over. Unfortunately, she had lost her footing and fell on the cement sidewalk. Robin yelped in pain, rubbing the back of her head softly in a vain attempt to soothe the pain. After a minute of recuperating, she took another leap onto the gates. This time, she had a strong enough,go grip to force her over the top and send her toppling into the grass. Instead of landing on her back like last time, she took a heavy blow to her right shoulder.

Robin's body protested as she pulled herself back onto her feet and rocketed to Mrs. Exalt's grave. Although it was dark and she had received several knocks to the head, she was almost positive that she saw a familiar form in the distance," Chrom!"

The boy was sitting cross legged in front of his mother's grave, and he flipped around in surprise. Before he could brace himself, the girl tackled him into the tightest hug her fatigued body could handle. Chrom squinted in the darkness, surprised to find a mop of white hair buried in his chest," Robin? What are you-you look exhausted-are you crying?"

He wasn't dead. He wasn't even hurt. He was okay. Robin sobs escaped her lips frantically as she held him with all her might, desperate to never let him go ever again," Y-You need t-to tell L-Lissa where y-you are," She choked out.

Chrom bit his lip as guilt flooded through him. He had forgotten to leave a note, and now his sister and Robin were freaking out. The blue haired boy nodded and pressed his lips against her forehead, hoping that it would calm her down a little bit. Once it was clear that that wasn't going to work, he sighed in defeat and pulled his cellphone out, making sure to hold Robin's shuddering body close to him," Lissa? It's me, Chrom. Don't worry, I'm fine, I just forgot to leave a note."

_"YOU ARE SUCH AN IDIOT!"_ His sister yelled," _I think you gave both Robin and I heart attacks! Just wait until I tell Frederick-"_

He frowned," I know, and I am really sorry, but we'll have to talk about this in the morning. I'll be home soon, okay? I just have to make sure Robin's alright."

_"...Fine, but only because Robin's my friend!"_

"Thank you. I'll see you in a bit, alright? Love you."

_"Love you too. Be safe."_

Chrom hung up his phone and slid it back into his pocket, using his now free hand to hold the white haired girl even closer, murmuring sweet nothings into her ear while rocking her. She continued crying for what seemed like half an hour, trying to convince herself that everything was okay now. No one was hurt. No one was going to die that night.

Eventually, her tears faded away, leaving her entirely exhausted," Chrom?"

"Hmm?"

"Promise me that you won't leave me."

By this point, he was well aware of how much he had scared his partner. After all, he had only seen her cry once, and even then it was nowhere near as bad as it was now," I promise I won't. I'm sorry I frightened you."

She was quiet for a few seconds before responding," No, it was my own imagination that was terrifying me. It wasn't your fault. And...," Robin curled closer to him, almost as if she were scared he'd leave," Thank you for helping me feel better when you'd probably rather not be with me at all."

The boy nearly broke when he heard her say that," Hold on, where'd you get the idea that I don't enjoy your company?"

"You've been avoiding me all day."

Chrom frowned and out the pieces together, cursing himself for being so idiotic. He was stupid to believe that hiding away his feelings would fix everything. All he wanted to do was tell her. Chrom wanted to scoop her up in his arms and make her feel safe. He wanted her to know how he felt, but he was way too scared. Could anyone blame him? She had done everything for him, and all he could do was stumble over his own words and get into fights. Not only that, but he had hurt her. That act alone made him want to curl up in a ball and never face her again.

What was he supposed to say? Should he lie? No, that was the reason she was sad in the first place. Lying would only cause him more trouble in the future. Yet if he told her the truth, she would probably never talk to him again. What to do, what to do?! Chrom took a deep breath and composed himself; a decision had been made," Robin..."

She cautiously pulled away from his chest, confused by his suddenly serious expression," What's wrong, Chrom? You look so serious."

"I...I think I owe you an apology," His eyes flickered from hers to the ground," This wasn't your battle to get sucked into. If it were up to me, you wouldn't have had to deal with any of the gang violence and death that I've had to."

Robin pursed her lips," But I chose it, and I don't regret it at all."

He smiled and squeezed her gently," At the beginning of the year, all I had been thinking about is beating Plegia, but my life changed forever when I found you in that field. Plegia is the least of my worries now, and protecting those I care about is my main goal, no matter the cost. Even my own life would not be too high a price to pay."

The white haired girl opened her mouth the lecture him, but the words died in her mouth. Instead, she started to play with the hem of her sweatshirt," I feel the same way."

Chrom took a deep breath," It's just that...we're together a lot nowadays. We're always side by side. At first, I thought of you as an friend, then a partner, and finally a...," He squeezed his eyes shut and plowed on," I've felt the bonds of trust grow between us, stronger and stronger. And then I realized...you were more than just a friend."

Robin's breath hitched,"...What do you mean?"

"I...uh...I mean I care about you, Robin. As a man, and you as a woman."

"Chrom, I-"

He clamped his hands on her shoulders gently, using her as an anchor to keep him from chickening out," Wait, please! You've made me come this far, and now I'm going to say my piece."

Robin, on the other hand, didn't know what to say. She had heard from Cordelia that he might use her as an escape from Emmeryn's death, and she didn't want him to do something that he would regret later. It would break her," But when you're worked up like this, you might say something you regret," She managed to sputter.

"I don't care!" He yelled," I've tried to keep this bottled up, and I can't do it anymore! I'm going to tell you how I feel, even if my head explodes in embarrassment!" Oh gods, he was saying weird things. This was bad. If he didn't pull himself together, she was sure to turn him away.

She bit her lip nervously," Okay."

Chrom nodded and shut his eyes, taking deep breaths to compose himself," All right, deep breath... FHOOOOOO! ...Hold...and out... HAAAAAAAAAAAAH," Despite the thick tension, Robin had to cover her mouth to keep from giggling," Once more... FHOOOOOOOOO! Holding...holding...and out... HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH," He flipped back around to face her, taking her hands on his," Right, I'm set now. Here goes. Prepare yourself, because I'm going to say it!"

"Then say it already!"

"Robin, I have a crush on you!"

Her heart stopped; did he say what she thought he did? Was it possible that she was the girl he liked? She gawked at him, still in a state of disbelief," What?"

Chrom's face had turned a pale shade of pink and he explained," I have been from the very first moment I laid eyes on you. I just didn't realize it until a few weeks ago," Seeing that she was still speechless, he pressed on," Look, I know this is sudden, but I'm not trying to force you into a decision. Believe me, whatever your answer, I shall abide by it," His gaze dropped," No matter how painful. And come what may, we'll always be friends," He slowly latched his pinky in hers," That I promise," He felt the same bubbly feeling his stomach that he did the first time he held her, encouraging him to continue on," You probably don't want to hear this, but I never want to let you go, Robin. Does that make me selfish?"

She felt a faint blush spread across her cheeks, all of her worries both flying away and weighing down on her at the same time. There was no way this could've been a joke, not with the way he spoke and the hopeful look in his eyes. This was what she had wanted for weeks now, and there was no way she was going to let the opportunity slip through her fingers. Mustering up all the bravery she could, Robin replied nervously," If so, then let me be selfish, too. I would be with you...always."

For a moment, neither of them spoke to each other. It was as if the stars were shining brighter and the wind was humming softer. Time seemed to stop, leaving the two to reveal their feelings in bliss. Chrom stared at her adoringly, using on of his hands to cup her cheek," Robin?"

She shivered underneath his touch," Yes, Chrom?"

"We met under unusual circumstances, but none of that matters to me. My sister always followed her heart, so now I'm going to follow mine...," He caressed her gently with his thumb," What I want to ask you...Well, what I mean is...," His blue eyes bore deep into her brown ones," Will you be my girlfriend?"

Robin felt the largest grin she had ever produced climb onto her face," Yes, yes, a million times yes!"

The blue haired boy took a minute to realize that she had accepted before beaming like an idiot. Without warning, he scooped her up bridal style and spun her around," Ha ha! With one word, you've made me the happiest man on earth!" Eventually, he helped her back onto her feet and moved his arms around her waist," Now I'll need to ask for a bit of patience for the near future...My first duty is to lead our band into Districts and get the best score we possibly can with a band as small as ours is. But I promise, as soon as we get our score, we can start doing the things the couples do! We can go on dates, and hold hands, and watch movies, and buy each other stuffed animals and chocolate-"

Robin giggled blissfully," That's all right. I'm a drum major too, remember? I'll figure something out."

Chrom's face softened, but the adoration it held was still present," Thank you."

"I can't help but think back to the day we first met...," Suddenly, she began to feel bashful," Strange, isn't it, the way things worked out? When I first woke up, I never dreamt that I'd have a life as good as the one I have now," Her heart pounded in her chest as Chrom laced his hands in hers," I am so lucky to have met you."

He leaned forward and kissed her cheek," You are my one and only. I treasure you, I adore you, and I will always be at your side, no matter what happens. We only have to wait a week."

Robin cupped his face in her hands and smiled," I would wait forever and longer for you."

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It was only Friday, and Robin was already having trouble.

After confessing to each other, they agreed that they'd have to keep their feelings a secret until Districts were over. That meant a lot of waiting and thinking. It was almost as hard as before they agreed to date in secret.

There were two things getting her through everything; firstly, Districts were just around the corner, and the preparations were keeping her busy. Secondly, the shared looks and almost constant contact with Chrom made her light up like a child on Christmas morning. Over the past month, some of the lunch tables containing band members combined, and Chrom made sure that he could always sit next to Robin so that they could hold hands underneath the table. The best part, though, was when they were alone. He had a habit of kissing her on her forehead, cheeks, and his favorite, her nose. Although she always blushed when he did this, she turned fire hydrant red whenever his lips made contact with her nose.

Thankfully, Districts weren't too far away. They were being held in Chron'sin that year, and tensions were high between Ylisse High and Plegia Academy. Robin was glad that Henry had joined band, because he turned out to be an extraordinary Bari Saxophonist with the memory of a genius. He picked up the entire routine in a matter of days, and was right in step with everyone.

Now that the band was in top form, there was time on Friday to set up who would be rooming with who in the hotel. Robin was immediately claimed by Sumia and Cordelia, Chrom settled with Stahl and Gaius, Lissa was joined by Maribelle and Bryony, Lon'qu got roped into rooming with Vaike and Hewitt, and Nowi was staying with Cherche and Olivia. She couldn't name the rest of the arrangement off the top of her head, but both her and Chrom had double checked everything to make sure that everyone had a room. Since Noire was too young for the trip, Tharja was going to stay behind and come for the day of the actual performance.

Henry learned that he was going to be sharing a room with Ricken and Donnel, who both seemed very nice. Since Ricken was advanced in his science classes, he shared Physics with Henry. The two had hit it off (despite the white haired boy being a tad bit creepy), and after being introduced to the clarinetist's girlfriend, the three formed a trio of sorts. The couple made sure to show Henry all the ropes and settle him in Ylisse high.

Things were going swell! Not only were Nowi and Ricken being welcoming, but Lissa was incredibly nice to him. He felt bad about how his old school reacted to Emmeryn's death, yet the younger sister didn't seem to hold any ill-will towards him. The feelings he had towards her were altogether confusing, mostly because no one was this kind to him. In fact, most people just avoided him.

A yawn behind him interrupted his thoughts," Well, speak of the devil. Nya ha!" Henry turned his attention away from the front of the room where all of the section leaders and drum majors were planning for the departure that night and approached Lissa. Instead of her sunny disposition, the usually light girl had bags under her eyes," You getting enough sleep, Lissa? You look pretty bushed."

Lissa shook her head," No, not nearly enough! I'm exhausted!"

"If you don't rest up before Districts, you might find yourself sleep-marching."

"I know, it's just...," She closed her eyes," I keep lying in bed and thinking about how good I need to make my solo for the show. And then I think about how Chrom disappeared on Monday night and Emm because she was such a good color guard captain, but when I think about Emm, I..." Her eyes snapped back open," Argh! It's all too much! I'm sick of all this stupid grief and mourning! And I'm tired of bad things happening! I don't even want our ENEMIES to feel sad anymore, Henry. I'm just...tired."

He ruffled her hair," That does seem like a problem, but we're in a competition, ya know? Keeping people you care about happy means making the other guy sad."

Lissa whimpered," My head knows that, but my heart is still having a hard time. I wish I was as tough as you, Henry. These sleepless nights are killing me..." She tilted forward, only to catch herself," Oh, oops."

"Wow. You look pretty wobbly there, Lissa," Worry began to gnaw on his insides, and while it would be a pleasant sensation in any other situation, he didn't like it when he was worried about her," Are you sure you're okay?"

"No, I'm fine. Thanks anyway, Henry," She managed a small smile," It really is sweet of you to keep an eye on me."

He chuckled," Nya ha ha! Me? Sweet? That's a new one," It was true. He had been called frightening on numerous occasions, a freak a handful of times, and once, some foreign person called him a wanker. Never sweet, though," Besides, you're the one who's always concerned about people's emotions and stuff while handling your own. I don't know how you do it, honestly. I couldn't go a week!"

"Heh heh, thanks. You're making me blush...," Her eyes dulled over, and she began to wobble again," Or...maybe just...dizzy?"

Henry had no time to react as the blonde haired girl fell forwards onto him, pulling both of them onto the ground," Ack! Lissa!" He straightened up against the wall immediately, pulling her onto her knees," You okay?"

"S-sorry... Kind of lost my balance there..." With the lack of energy she had, she plopped her head back against his chest, unaware of how much it made the boy blush," Thanks for catching me, Henry."

He smiled and patted her head," Easy peasy. Any time!"

Lissa hummed and cuddled closer to him, shutting her eyes as she did so," Mmm... You're so warm. It's nice... Relaxing..." Her breathing slowly steadied itself, and she didn't seem to have any intention to move.

"Um, Lissa?" She was asleep. He refrained from bursting into laughter and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, making sure that she wouldn't accidentally roll away in her sleep," Nya ha! Guess I'm not going anywhere for a little while," He felt his smile turn into something more genuine as he watched her finally relax," You're pretty warm, yourself. Now I'm..." He felt himself yawn," I'm getting all sleepy, too..."

Before he could doze off, a timid voice spoke up," Um, Henry, is it?" The girl (Olivia?) pointed to his knee, where a growing red spot spread," What are those red stains on your clothes?"

"Oh, will you look at that? It's blood! ...Wonder where it came from?" He moved his free hand to dab it. Once there was a small amount of the liquid on his finger, he brought it up to his mouth and licked it,"...Oh, hey! It's MY blood! Nya ha! My scrape must've reopened when I fell! I remember getting this when falling out of a tree last week. Oh man, good times."

Olivia cringed," GROSS!...And also really creepy. Why are you laughing about it?! That wound needs to be bandaged up immediately! I could go get Cordelia or Maribelle; they always seem to have bandages of some sort on them-"

He smiled," You wanna help? I would get it myself, but I don't want to wake Lissa."

The pink haired girl nodded happily and ran off to fetch a few band aids. It only took her a minute to locate Cordelia and run back. She crouched down onto her knees and pulled Henry's pant leg up, revealing a very gory scar,"...Oh, gods, look at how deep this is! How could you not notice?"

"Oh, I've got a high pain threshold. It's a genetic thing. Nerve damage. I've had a lot worse than this!"

"You've had WORSE? Where? And how?!"

Henry shrugged," When I was a kid, my parents put me in this exclusive school for the brilliant minded. They had a bunch of stuff you could do, like disect pigeons and what not. Well, as you can imagine, some of the experiments got a bit out of hand," He chuckled," Once, I almost set my face on fire! Nya ha! Those were the days..."

Olivia tutted and wrapped his knee," Your teachers were negligent. Why didn't your parents pull you out of there?"

"Meh, my parents didn't care what I did as long as I wasn't expelled, so you can imagine how angry they were when their fancy school kicked me out. They sent me directly to Plegia afterwards, and I've been going there up until this week. They didn't care if I transferred here or not because they got me an apartment out here and send me allowance every week so that I can live. Heck, the whole reason they sent me to that old school was to get rid of me. But hey, no worries! I turned out fine!"

The dancer frowned, all too familiar with disapproving parents," I see now... Your cheerful demeanor is just a mask you use to hide your pain. You use it as a cover to hide your deep-seated resentment and anger..."

Henry snorted," That's what all my psychiatrists said. But nope! Not true. I'm just a happy guy."

"No, no, you can't fool me! I've never seen a real smile from you, one from the heart. I'm a performer, you know! I can tell a faker when I see one," Without warning, she began to stroke his head," Shhh...It's all okay now. You never need to visit that terrible school again. Now come on, let down your guard. Show me the real Henry!"

He let out a low whistle," Wow. You are a crazy lady!"

Olivia crossed her arms huffily," I am not crazy! I'm trying to help, so you could at least be polite!" She sighed and pulled his pant leg back down," All right, your scar is bandaged. But this isn't over, you hear? I want you to come see me again so I can help you get over these emotional issues."

Although he really didn't want another psychiatrist session, Henry did like the idea of making new friends," Hey, sure! I got time. Just not now," He yawned and leaned his head on top of Lissa's," I'm going to take a nap."

* * *

**I DID IT! CHROBIN IS CANNON IN THIS STORY NOW! THEY HAVE CONFESSED TO EACH OTHER AND ARE MADLY IN LOVE AND WOOHOO! Okay, I will start off by saying that it took at least four tries to figure out how the heck I wanted them together. None of the first three times involved Robin dreaming about his death and then convincing herself that he was dead too, but I liked that way the best. I figured that Chrom would only confess if the stakes of the latter were incredibly high. So, I left some things out of their confession because they are going to grow as a couple; they did not specifically tell each other that they loved the other (I had to look up ways to say I love you without actually saying it) and they did not have a first kiss. Those things will come soon, though. I also did not plan on having Virion befriend Robin, but they are both tacticians in a way, and it was only natural for them to at least talk for a bit. Speaking of budding friendships, I added some OliviaxHenry in there for all of you shippers! Unfortunately, they will not get together, but I like their supports and feel that they would be good friends. Oh yeah, and Henry attends Plegia now! We will have some more people join after Districts. I also love the idea that Henry would be buddies with Ricken and Nowi, so I made that cannon as well. Review time!  
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**Kit-Cat Star: ****Hello! It's nice to meet you (if you haven't noticed, I like greeting my new reviewers because I love you all)! Thank you so much! It is reassuring to hear that people enjoy my oddball AU, and even more cool that you like my writing style! The funeral could have gone a lot of ways, as I said in the chapter at one point, but I figured that they had gone through enough for a while. Thank you for commenting!  
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**MaloftheGalaxy: ****OH MY GOSH, WE HAVE THE SAME OTPS! Literally, the only two couples that I have paired together twice is Chrobin and Olivi-qu (although I am doing Stahldelia again this go round). Ooh, a suggestion! I've pondered a few ideas on how I want to make the final push for Lon'qu and Olivia to get together (obvious spoilers), and I would love to incorporate parts of your idea! I've also headcannoned that Chrom and Olivia are buddies, just like Robin and Lon'qu are, so I could have some sort of event happen there. No need to apologize, I love getting feedback and ideas! It's great fun! It's nice to have you put your input in, and thanks for commenting!  
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**Amy47101: ****If you've been looking into fire emblem if, have you seen all the clones of the future children? It's pretty weird, but I don't hate it. It's just weird. Haha, I wouldn't put it past Henry to try something like that. Yup, your guesses are (probably because of spoilers and stuff) all correct! I actually have no idea who to put Vaike with...maybe an OC...or something. I dunno. Cordelia is hard for me to like, but she's really growing on me for the current playthrough I have because I'm playing classic on hard mode for the first time, and she is FREAKING USEFUL! I love everything about Embers. 'Nough said. I also enjoy reading other fanfics, like I read your one-shot about the Final Exam. It was cute! There is also this one where Chrom and Robin switch jobs that I think is fluffy and adorable, especially with all the family stuff (there is also a rare ship in there that I adore). There are others that I like, but those are the ones that come from the top of my head. I'm glad that you reviewed, I love talking back and forth with you through each chapter! Thank you!  
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**Moonlights Glow: ****The c****hrobin is definitely real in this chapter, haha. I'm in love with Nowi and Ricken, and they were one of the first to get together in my playthrough, so I had to put them in first! Yeah, Mr. Exalt is not sane whatsoever. I have some backstory on that, which involves him being not a horrible person at first, but when his wife cheated on him...well, it didn't go over too well with him. I'm just glad that he didn't find either Lissa or Robin (a part of me really wants Chrom to confront his dad, though). Nah, it's cool. It was only briefly mentioned, and he has changed a lot over the course of the story, so I don't blame you. Hehe, I've got lots of Stahldelia moments headed our way! Chrom will eventually get the soulmate one, but it's going to have to take a little while because they just started (secretly) dating. Thank you, I'm glad the funeral turned out okay! I didn't want the tone of her funeral to be sad because she was a person that wanted to make people feel better. I've very lightly hinted at why she may have been locked out in this chapter, but it will become more apparent in the future. Good luck with your colorguard squad, I hope that you get enough members! The official Districts will probably span over two or three chapters because there will be (spoilers ahead. If you don't want them, skip to the next parentheses) another drum major joining the band. (Okay, you're good. Spoilers be gone). Thank you for commenting!****  
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**So, as I responded to above in one of the comments, the actual districts will probably span over two or three chapters because of the different events that will work out. I am definitely having someone we've seen before come back in (maybe two or three people, I don't know yet), and Gangrel will be back. See you guys then, and thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	18. Chapter 18 The Mad King Of Plegia

**Hey guys! Sorry this is getting posted later than usual, I was busy today because...IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! WOOHOO! Anyways, this was a weird chapter because I had no idea what I wanted to write in it. Sorry if it's bad...There is a thrilling moment near the end of the chapter, so there's a slightly warning for that I guess. Happy reading guys! **

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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It was 7:00 P.M., and Robin was standing outside of a school us with her trusty sweatshirt, a clipboard with Attendance in her hands, and Chrom standing by her side to help. The two were supervising their fellow band members load up their luggage and find seats on the bus while Frederick answered any questions from the parents.

Chrom glanced down at his girlfriend, making sure that no one was in hearing range before speaking," I have an idea."

She rose her eyebrow suspiciously at him," What is it?"

"I've told you that Stahl has a crush on Cordelia, right?" Robin nodded slowly," Well, I figure that we should set them up. I have a few scenarios involving fireworks-"

She cringed," I don't think we should make a huge deal out of this if we're going to go ahead with it. Start with small things, like giving them little jobs to do together. Then we can move onto persuading them to hang out together, and eventually, they might develop feelings for each other."

Chrom crossed his arms," Fine, but only because your plans often far outweigh mine," A smirk played on his lips as a new idea popped into his head. He leaned closer to her and whispered," Do you want to sit by me on the way to Districts?"

He watched as her cheeks turned light pink," Uh, yeah," She replied in a flustered fashion," I'd like that very much," She was so cute when she was bashful. Well, Chrom thought that his girlfriend was always cute, but she was especially adorable whenever she blushed or became shy. He guessed that it was because she had never been in a relationship, so she a bit nervous. Chrom found it absolutely precious. Robin flickered her attention away from him and tilted her head towards the upcoming siblings," The Rozarios are here."

Chrom nodded and turned to Markel and Hadlee. The older brother waved cheerfully at Robin, who returned it warmly. Hadlee, on the other hand, was bouncing on her toes in excitement and clutching her backpack with enthusiasm," Hey guys! Aren't you excited? I'm excited! I've never done something like this before, because we don't have a marching band in middle school. I wish I would've come up a year early like Ricken, because-"

Markel placed his hand on his sister's head to silence her," Do we have assigned seats on the bus, or can we choose who we're with?"

"You get to choose."

"Great! I'll probably rope Hewitt or Erick into sitting by me-"

The auburn haired girl interrupted her older brother," I'm going to sit by May! We're best friends, you see, even though she just moved here this year! Sometimes, she'll spend the night at our house, and it's super fun-Oh, there she is now! HIIIIII MAAAAY!"

The blonde freshman nearly jumped out of her skin, but as soon as she realized it was Hadlee who yelled at her, she made her way over," Oh, I didn't know we were supposed to sign in."

"We are! Markel and I just got here, and the first thing we did was come straight to Chrom and Robin. You're going to sit by me on the bus, and we can spend the entire time on my phone watching cat videos!" Hadlee grasped her friend's hands and jumped up and down," Or, we could play the I spy game! Or, we could try and find a movie that the Internet didn't block. Or-"

May giggled and started to cart the hyper girl onto the bus," Come on, we don't want to bother them with your chatter."

"I'm not bothersome!"

Markel rolled his eyes and followed the freshmen onto the bus, giving one last wave to the two drum majors. Robin waited until the three were on the vehicle to start talking," Wow, I didn't know Hadlee was that rambunctious."

"Yeah...hey, I know this is a stupid question, but do you feel as if you've seen May somewhere before? She looks pretty familiar," Chrom murmured thoughtfully.

"Well, she's been playing the flute all year-"

"No, aside from that."

Robin shook her head," No, I don't think so. Then again, I'm probably not much help. I don't remember anything past a month ago."

The blue haired boy tried to search his brain for any sign that he remembered the girl, but nothing came to him. With a sigh, he surveyed the area," I think those three were the last ones. I'm gonna go tell Frederick; you should go find us some seats."

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Lissa, who was cuddled in her favorite pajamas and tucked underneath a blanket grinned from ear to ear as she drank the tea Maribelle brought for her for the trip," This is so good!"

The curly blonde girl, who was sporting a similar attire (accept in pink), nodded in agreement as she sipped her own drink," Isn't it just divine, darling? The leaves are infused with a citrus aroma, so I was certain you'd like it."

"I like citrus?"

"In all the years we've shared tea, you only mention the flavor if it's a citrus blend," Maribelle giggled," How funny that you didn't even know!"

The flutist smiled bashfully," That is funny! And a little embarrassing, I guess…!" She shrugged," You know me better than I know myself, Maribelle!"

"That's hardly a surprise, darling. I'm your best friend," She replied in a matter-a-factually tone," I know your favorite color, you favorite animal, the boy you have a crush on-"

"Hee hee! I know! It's SO true-Wait a second," Lissa gasped over-dramatically," I don't know what kind of tea YOU like best!"

Maribelle blinked, wondering why the tea flavor she liked best was the most important fact Lissa had to know," Well now, that simply won't do at all," A sly smile crossed her lips," I know! Why don't you take a guess?"

"Hmmmm. Is it…rose tea?"

"Tsk! Such a common flavor."

"Tea with milk?"

Maribelle shuddered," Ugh! Why not just drink from a mud puddle?!"

"Uh...tea with peanut butter and apple slices?"

"...why would you even suggest such an atrocity?"

Lissa huffed," This is hard! Maybe if I knew more about tea…," She swiveled in her seat back towards her friend," What other kinds are there?"

The piccoloist sighed," Ah, well. I suppose I'll have to take pity and simply tell you. My favorite blend…"

"Is…?"

"Black tea infused with the still-warm blood of an adult male grizzly bear."

Without warning, Lissa spit all of the contents of her mouth out and onto the back of Gregor's head. Luckily, the senior was sleeping and didn't seem to take notice. Maribelle, on the other hand, was appalled for some reason. She wasn't quite sure why, seeing that the boy was Gregor of all people, but she lectured her friend anyways," Lissa, what is wrong with you! What manner of lady spews tea?! It is simply not done!"

Lissa furrowed her eyebrows," What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you?! Who would drink such a thing?!"

"No one, darling. It was only a jest," Maribelle giggled, enjoying the results of her joke. Once she had her fill of entertainment, she pulled a tissue out of her bag and handed it to her best friend,"…Now wipe your mouth, please."

"I actually believed you!" The youngest Exalt whined," All right, now you have to tell me the real answer! What's your favorite tea?"

Maribelle only smiled graciously," Why, whichever ones you enjoy, darling. That way I get to appreciate both the beverage and your enjoyment of it! So if you ever find a blend you're especially fond of, just say the word"

"Um, all right. I will. Thanks. But I still kinda feel like that wasn't a real answer…" Before she could question it further, her phone buzzed. The two girls exchanged curious looks before going to see who had sent her a message," Oh, it looks like Freddie sent me a picture."

Maribelle tapped her chin curiously," I wonder what it is..."

"Why don't we find out?" Lissa clicked open the message and gasped, her heart melting at the sight of the picture. The photo was a shot of their two drum majors asleep on the bus; Robin had her legs tucked in and was curled up against Chrom, and his head was leaning on hers. If you looked closely, you could see them holding hands," OMG! Do you think they're dating?"

"Well, they should be if they aren't already," The piccoloist commented," They're very cute together."

Lissa's immediately saved the picture onto her phone for later blackmail," Hey, why don't we keep this our little secret for a bit, okay? I would love to use this against Chrom in the future! Can you imagine how red his face would get? I think he'd explode!"

"Now that would be a sight I'd love to see," Maribelle glanced at the photo again," Honestly, I hope that they are truly courting. It would be good for the both of them."

"Yeah, and I could be sisters with Robin!"

"...Don't get too ahead of yourself, darling."

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The bus finally arrived at the hotel they'd be staying at around 11:00 P.M. Everyone sleepily trudged off the vehicle and got in line to wait for their room keys. Although Anna was just as tired as everyone, she managed to upkeep a conversation with her roommate, Tiki, to keep her from falling asleep (again)," We're almost up to get our keys, then we can finally get some sleep."

Tiki nodded calmly," I am looking forward to getting some rest before our big day tomorrow. Is your family coming to support you?"

"Uh...well...I don't-"

"Oh my goodness, it's Miss Tiki!" The two girls turned curiously to see the concierge grinning like an idiot," Chron'sin's little model has come back home!"

Anna blinked," Hold on, did he just say model? When were you going to tell me you modeled?"

She shrugged nonchalantly," It was just a few gigs for labels when I was 8 or so, but the publicity got really bad. That's why we moved to Ylisse."

The concierge continued to ooze compliments," My, you look even more stunning than you did as a child! I can't believe our little superstar has come back! Can I please get an autograph?"

Anna saw her chance before she could even think about it. She looped her arm around Tiki's shoulders and beamed," That will be $10.00 for one autograph, or You can get two for $21.00!"

Their other roommate, Panne, groaned," I do not care for your fame or your greed. I only care to get some sleep-" She was interrupted when the man threw his money in Anna's face and handed Tiki his notepad," You have got to be kidding-"

"Please sign it to my daughter, Tanith. She is in Chron'sin's colorguard, and she loves you and Ylisse's colorguard! She is absolutely obsessed with Olivia, Anna, and Ricken!"

"Oh that's so cool! I'm Anna!"

The man nearly swooned," Really? Then I must have your autograph too!"

Panne crossed her arms," Can you just give us our room key-"

Anna took the $11.00 from the concierge and scribed her name down next to Tiki's," Your daughter made the right choice to be in colorguard, and I would love to chat with you longer, but my friend Panne is in need of some sleep. May we have our key?"

The man nodded cheerfully and handed it to them, gushing about how he was going to be the coolest dad ever when he gave his daughter that.

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Robin sat in the bleachers early the next morning, clutching a poorly made attempt to recreate her normal coffee. Instead of resting or touring the town like most of the band was, she had decided to watch some of the other schools practice to see what they were competing against. The main thing that fazed her was that all of the bands were double the size of Ylisse's, which was going to make it hard to produce as good of a sound.

She grumbled as she sipped the vile recreation of her favorite drink, trying to figure out a way to make their band as good as everyone else's. Sure, she didn't expect to win at all, but she did want a good marking. Robin rubbed her temples wearily," Well, look who it is!" An annoying familiar voice chirped," Little Prince's Plegian girlfriend."

Robin frowned," I'm not in the mood right now, Gangrel."

"Oh, but I am," He situated himself next to her and smirked as he watched a band leave the field," Where are all of your friends?"

"Either sleeping or exploring."

"So you're alone, then?"

Robin narrowed her eyes, not liking where this conversation was going at all," Why do you ask?"

Gangrel's leer continued to grow," Well, I've noticed some things this year. It seems that you are at the top of Chrom's priorities."

"That's not-"

"Oh, are you telling me you haven't noticed how enamored he is with you? Did you not see the way he ran after you on the first day of school to make sure that no one would hurt you? Or maybe you forgot about the time he stopped beating me up because you had that silly bloody nose?"

Suddenly, Robin's blood ran cold. Gangrel was the boy who was speaking over the loudspeakers the day that Emmeryn had been murdered. Suddenly, she didn't care about whatever he had to say next. Without hesitation, she got onto her feet and tried to make a run for it, but the boy grabbed her arm where it was bruised and squeezed," If you even think about screaming, I will knock you out."

Robin growled," Let go of me!"

"Or what? You'll sick your little prince on me?"

Her free hand popped the lid off of her cup and splashed the steaming liquid into his face," No, this!" Gangrel screamed in agony, giving her the perfect chance to make an escape. She spun on her heel and ran underneath the stands, speeding until she accidentally reached a dead end. Sensing the Gangrel was still after her, she pulled her phone out and clicked the first person on her contact list of before hiding it in a nearby bush. She prayed that whoever was on the other line would find her.

Gangrel had completely lost his coy attitude, now having it be replaced with a dangerous sense of anger," You shouldn't have done that," He spat as he shoved her against the wall," I was going to kidnap you nicely so that Ylisse would have to forfeit, but imagine the excitement princey will have when he finds you beaten to a pulp on the side of a road. I'm thrilled just thinking about it!" He pulled out a roll of duct-tape and wrapped her wrists tightly together before ripping of a piece and slapping it over her lips. When that was done, he pushed her onto the ground and taped her feet together," Good! Now that you have no hope of escaping, where should we keep you? Would you happen to know where any abandoned basements or warehouses might be?"

Despite trying to keep a cool head, Robin was freaking out. She knew better than to fight back at this point, seeing that he was already angry and threatening her. All she could do was hope that whoever she had called was on their way, because if not, she'd be the reason Ylisse would get a bad grade. She didn't even want to think about how badly Chrom would react if she disappeared, especially so soon after Emmeryn's death. Honestly, all she wanted to do was tell him that she'd be alright, even if it was a lie.

She was yanked out of her thoughts when Gangrel grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him," Why so vacant, hmmm? Oh, do you think your precious prince-y is coming to save you? Well, unfortunately for you, he's-"

"Right here," The two flipped around, shocked to find Chrom with his phone in his hand. He was even more furious than he had been at the graveyard the first time; his eyes were full of fury and he was emitting a darkness that Robin didn't know he possessed," Now get your fucking hands off her."

Gangrel glared at his rival," How'd you find us? No one was on the field when I captured her," His eyes fell on the phone in Chrom's hands before turning back to Robin," You called him, didn't you?" She only met his stare with a defiant look. Gangrel narrowed his eyes before slamming his foot her stomach," You idiotic-"

Chrom threw his phone onto the ground and grabbed the redhead by his collar, dragging him away from Robin. He chucked the boy against the wall and kneed his gut, radiating fury," I told you not to touch her! This is between you and me!"

"Technically you told me to keep my hands off of her," Gangrel retorted, swinging his fist into the blue haired boy's face," I kicked her, remember?" He then shoved his foot into Chrom's chest for the sake of irony," I would love to show you again if you missed it the first time-"

Chrom roared and grabbed his rival's thigh, dragging him onto the ground with him. In a fluid motion, he pinned Gangrel onto the ground and sent his fist into the Plegian's cheek," I made a promise to protect her, and there is no way in hell I'm letting you hurt her again!" He swung again, this time giving Gangrel an uppercut to the chin," She is the one thing that give me the will to keep fighting," Chrom slammed his punch onto his nose," Robin is the wind at my back and the sword at my side! Without her, there is no reason to wake up in the morning! I swear, if you even think about taking her away from me, you won't wake up either."

Robin figured that Chrom was making her a softie, because his words caused her eyes to well up. Gangel, on the other hand, spit out blood and chortled," Are you done? May I vomit now? Bwa ha ha!" The blue haired boy paused," What a flowery lie! Men are beasts! Nothing more! We fight! We kill! We devour our prey! Beasts do not stand beside beasts, little prince...," A twisted grin slid it's way onto his face," They use each other only so long as it suits their own selfish purpose!"

"THAT'S IT!" Chrom bellowed," I have tried to sympathize your sick need for revenge against my family, but today you have gone too far! I know you hate my father, but neither Lissa or I are him! Heck, Lissa's not even his daughter! One of the Grimleal he slaughtered was! Do you think I support his actions? Did you forget that he murdered my mother?! He only came to Emmeryn's funeral to get out of jail for a day! I despise him, yet now I see that I'm his escape goat now that Emm's dead! Now everyone gets to call me a monster simply because I'm related to him! How is this any easier than your life?!"

Gangrel stared at Chrom with an unreadable expression," My life is different because you have people that care about you. I don't," With that said, he pushed the Exalt off of him and staggered onto his feet. The two looked at each other with an odd sense of understanding, although Gangrel broke it by glancing over at Robin," Don't bring this up to anyone, or I'll give the Grimleal a tip about your little girlfriend."

Chrom knew he should've tackled him down and restrained him, but something was holding him back. Was it newfound pity, or the fact that he didn't want to risk the Grimleal finding Robin? He wasn't sure. He waited until Gangrel was out of sight to rush to Robin's aid," You're not badly hurt, right? Gods, I didn't think he'd take it this far!" He pinched the end of the tape around her mouth, prepping to rip it off," This is going to hurt a little bit, so brace yourself," He tore it off as quickly as possible, wincing at the sound of her pained yelp," Sorry...Gods, I'm so sorry...I should've come here faster or joined you in the first place! It's my fault that-Oomph?" He was cut off when Robin stretched up as much as possible and pressed her lips against his. Seeing that she was still restrained and shorter than him, she began to fall backwards out of the kiss. Chrom, on the other hand, wasn't going to allow that to happen; he wrapped on hand around her waist and the other clutching her snow white hair. A warm sensation bubbled inside of him, alerting him that everything was going to be okay. Robin was safe, and that was all that mattered.

Robin, on the other hand, was completely new with the whole kissing thing. She figured that a peck on the lips would be satisfactory enough, but when he wrapped his arms around her and deepened the kiss, she felt all thoughts leave her head. It made her feel special, like she was his only concern in the world of troubles they had to endure. All of her worries disappeared with him holding her and kissing her like she was the only thing that mattered.

Eventually they pulled apart, with his girlfriend's face the same color as a strawberry," Thank you for saving my life, Chrom," Her blush intensified," You're my hero."

His face turned twice as red as hers," B-But I was late and you got hurt-"

Once again, she shut him up by pressing her lips against his," No, it's not that. You're always there when I need you, whether I be in actual danger or not. I always feel safe when I'm with you."

He moved his hand from her hair to her waist and leaned his forehead against her," I will always be there for you because...I'm in love with you. I think I always have been."

The white haired girl giggled, trying to prevent any tears from escaping her eyes," I love you too, Chrom."

He grinned and kissed her nose, happier than he had been in a long time. When he had first found her, he knew that Robin would be an important part of his life. Sure, he didn't know that he was going to be madly in love after a month of knowing the girl, but now that he looked back on it, it wasn't that surprising.

Robin's ears suddenly perked up," Hey, I think I hear someone crying."

Her boyfriend nodded and finished un-taping her before bringing them to their feet. Once they were steadied, they picked up their phones and cautiously made their way towards the sound. As soon as the turned the corner, the sobs stopped," I don't trust this-"

Suddenly, a Plegian student pounced from their hiding spot and made a mad dash towards Chrom with a baseball bat in his hands. Before he could even think about fighting back, a desperate yell stopped him," Father, no!"

Without warning, Marth jumped from the other side of them and caught the bat mid-swing, yanking it out of the attacker's grasp and kneeing the Plegian in the stomach. She then pulled one of his arms over her shoulder and used it to slam them onto the ground, knocking them out cold. Marth waited five seconds to make sure they were truly unconscious before flipping back to the two," Thanks gods I came in time!"

Chrom stood with his mouth agape and his eyes wider than frisbees," You...You just called me father."

Marth's mouth formed a surprised O," D-Did I? Well...I...," She checked their surroundings," Maybe we should speak about this in private."

* * *

**So, lots of Chrobin. This story will be Chrobin heavy for awhile because Lucina gets to become a main-er character now! The next chapter will be mainly those three. In a surprise turn of events, I didn't kill Gangrel. There was a face-off because without Robin, Ylisse's band probably would've fallen apart. OOH, AND THEY KISSED! THEY ALSO LOVE EACH OTHER! IT'S GREAT! I LOVE CHROBIN! WIND AT MY BACK AND SWORD AT MY SIDE WOOHOO! Also a bit of Tiki backstory because she has hardly been in this story, MaribellexLissa friendship, and Frederick TOTALLY knows that Chrobin is cannon. Got to put Markel, Hadlee, and May in the beginning as well! Alright, review time:**

**Amy47101: I ****didn't mean for it to be as a teasing thing! I just love their supports and feel bad that they're not going to be in this story as a couple, so I had them be buddies! Sorry if it came across negatively, I didn't mean for it to be that way. The future children look exactly like they do in Fire Emblem Fates, and the Inigo lookalike is basically Inigo with a different name. It's...weird. I usually pair Vaike with Miriel as well, and I actually almost made Vaike the gym teacher. I ended up keeping him a student because he's sort of friends with Chrom and Lon'qu. Cordelia is a weird character for me, because I am in the middle. I don't hate her, but I don't like her that much either. Though, I did play my first classic round, and she was extremely useful! Your welcome! Thank you for reading, and I'm sorry that the OliviaxHenry thing came across wrong! I'm glad that you gave me feedback, though! Thank you so much!  
**

**So, it was an extremely short chapter compared to the last two or three weeks, but I was also scrunched for time (literally, I wrote half the chapter this morning). The next chapter will officially introduce Lucina into the story, so stay tuned (another future child may or may not make an appearance)! Thank you for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	19. Chapter 19 Of Sacred Blood

**Hey guys! Guess who wrote half of this chapter on Sunday and the other half today because they've been working a day camp and babysitting all week? This girl! Seriously, I'm so tired. I'm also really busy. But I love you guys and I love writing, so I'm going to hopefully be able to post every Saturday (I haven't missed a deadline yet, so I think I'm good). Okay, so we left off with Lucina calling Chrom father and Districts that night. Enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

The most private place the three could think of at the time was Chrom's hotel room; luckily for them, neither Gaius or Stahl were anywhere to be seen, but they assumed that the two foodies had gone to the candy store downtown. As soon as they were settled, Robin fluttered off to get some ice for her boyfriend's bruises and give them some alone time.

Marth hugged her knees nervously as she sat on the bed across from Chrom's, looking almost guilty," I don't even know where to begin."

"I already know you're not "Marth," though I've nothing better to call you..." Chrom ran his hand through his hair in exasperation," But I'm far too in debt to you to question you any further. Whoever you are, I owe you beyond repaying."

The blue haired girl smiled softly," Thank you, but...," She squeezed her eyes shut," I think I would prefer you know the truth."

Chrom was secretly relieved that he would finally find out who this girl was, but he didn't want to scare her away from telling him," As you wish."

Her eyes flickered around the room anxiously," D-Did you happen to bring Falchion?"

"What? Why?"

"I...uh...wish to play it."

Chrom snorted, pulling his prized instrument out of its case and handing it to her," Good luck with that. Apart from my father, I'm the only one that can play-" Before he could finish, Marth began to blow soft, melodic sounds out of the bell,"...How...what...That's impossible."

She quickly handed the trumpet back to him and folded her hands in her lap," Well, I guess I should start off by saying that my name is Lucina, not Marth. I've told you that I come from the future, and while I'm not sure if you believed me or not, it's true."

"Ma-I mean, Lucina..," Chrom swallowed nervously,"...How can you play Falchion?"

"...I'm your daughter."

Chrom felt as if someone had filled a pillowcase with bricks and slammed it into his stomach; He had a daughter? Who was her mother? Didn't she say she came from a future where gang wars were constantly happening and the government was corrupt? Most importantly, why wasn't he there with her? He balled his fists up, cursing his future self for leaving his daughter alone.

Lucina fiddled with her hands, trying to form the right words to sooth the blow," I know, this all seems impossible, but it's true! As soon as we get back to Ylisse, I can show you my Falchion from the future! I can play it really well, because that's something we used to do before..."

Although he had only figured her identity out now, he had already developed a strong, protective bond over the younger girl," Lucina...You deserved better from me than one trumpet and a world of troubles...I'm sorry."

Chrom only noticed now that one of her eyes was a distinctly lighter blue than the other, but both of them were glistening with tears. Without warning, a few began to slip out uncontrollably as she shook. The drum major got off of his bed and kneeled in front of his newfound daughter, using one of his hands to cup her cheek and wipe away stray tears. Lucina froze at the contact and looked up in surprise before collapsing into his open arms," Oh, Father!" Chrom flinched at the sudden contact, but ended up wrapping his arms tightly around her shoulders, hoping to make all of her fears disappear.

Eventually, her sobs died down and Lucina was able to compose herself again. Noticing how close she was with her father from the past, she scooted back onto her place on the bed to give him some space. Instead of sitting across from her like he had before, he situated himself next to her," Better, Lucina?"

"Yes," She wiped the last of the tears from underneath her eyes," Father...I'm sorry. It just all rushed back at once when I heard you two telling each other that you loved the other earlier."

"Father..."

Lucina backtracked," Should I call you something else?"

"No, it's just strange to my ear," He nudged her playfully with his shoulder,"...I like it."

"...Father! Heh heh...," She giggled, returning the nudge," I guess it would be funny, seeing that you're only eighteen!"

Chrom chuckled," Hah! Yes, it will take some getting used to! Hey, you said something about overhearing me tell Robin I loved her; were you the one she heard crying?"

The blue haired girl blushed bright pink," It was sweet, and it reminded me that there was still hope. It's just...I already messed up one part of the timeline, so it was nice to realize that some things would never change."

"Does that mean...," Chrom felt his insides swirl," Lucina, who is your mother?"

"I'm sorry-Chrom?"

The two turned around, only to find Robin nervously standing in the doorway with the ice bucket in her hand," Hmm? Oh, Robin. What is it?"

The white haired girl let her gaze fall to the ground as her nerves ate her alive. Had he already found another girl? No, of course not! What was she even thinking? Robin was positive that he loved her as much as she loved him, so there was no way he'd leave her for a prettier girl...right? She sighed and place the bucket on the counter, moving her hands to fiddle with her sleeve," It's just that... You two are in here alone, and Marth is...crying. This is how rumors are born," Chrom felt his heart being ripped out as he watched his girlfriend become progressively more nervous. He got up from his seat by and took her hands in his, kissing the backs of both of them to reassure her," I trust you, Chrom, but is there a reason you and Marth need to be alone?"

He pressed his lips against her forehead before turning back to his child," Can we tell her, Lucina?"

Lucina's eyes widened in excitement, but she managed to keep her composure," Of course."

"Lucina? Isn't that your mother's middle name? And I thought your name was Marth."

Chrom lead his girlfriend over to Lucina and sat her down before kneeling in front of her," Robin, this is going to come as a shock, but...I'll just say it; This is my daughter from the future."

Robin's jaw dropped,"...What?! Have you gone insane?!"

"I'm not sure if this will soften the blow or not, but you're also my mother," Lucina added carefully.

This time, both of them were in shock," Hold on a minute...," The white haired girl clutched her forehead," Is that why you had the Exalt mark on the same hand as my Grimleal mark? You always seem to know who I am when I don't...," She gasped," Is that why you killed those men to save my life?"

"Wait, you've killed people?!"

Lucina winced," I-I had no choice...You always told me that I should do everything in my power to protect Mo-" She froze and shook her head,"-To protect those important to me. I already failed you once, and I swore never to do it again."

The blue haired boy ran his hand through his hair," Are you telling me that you have killed several people?" When she didn't answer, he cursed," Dammit, why would I allow you to do that? Don't...don't tell me I turned into my father..."

"No...you died."

Chrom felt his heart drop into his stomach as a cold feeling enveloped him," Wh-What?"

Robin's hand flew over her mouth in horror," But why? What happens in the future?!"

"The devil, Grima, is resurrected," She gritted through her teeth," His chuckle means death for those who hear it, and he possesses an evil that silences all hope...," Her hands started to shake again," Death everywhere..."

"Chrom?...Our friends? All of us? Dead?!"

"...Yes."

Robin felt lightheaded. It couldn't be true; it was just a nightmare, there was no way that Chrom would be murdered in real life. She tightened her hand into a fist and slowly collapsed onto the edge of the bed,"...I...I don't know what to say."

"Although it sounds like a hoax, the truth of it stands before us," Chrom mumbled," She carries Falchion, my same trumpet, and can play it just as well as I can," He looked over at his girlfriend desperately," There is only one Falchion, Robin. I believe her."

"...I believe her too," She agreed after a moment of thought," But that doesn't make anything easier...," Her eyes trailed back to Lucina,"...My daughter..."

Lucina straightened up," Yes, Robin. Your daughter."

As she observed the younger girl, she couldn't keep a soft smile from climbing onto her face," You have grown into such a strong and beautiful woman...Chrom and I are truly lucky."

"Thank you, m-," She stiffened," erm...ma'am."

Robin felt as if someone had reached inside of her and pulled out her heart," Are you not going to call me Mother?"

"I...thought you might mind. After all, you didn't take the news as well as father had, and I didn't know...I didn't know if you would still accept me," Lucina forced a fake smile onto her face," It's perfectly alright if you don't! After all, we've just met and are practically strangers...I wouldn't blame you..."

Robin shook her head frantically and leaned forward and scoop her daughters hands in hers," Of course I accept you! Even though we have just met, I already know that I love you with all my heart! I've always wanted a family, after all. I count myself lucky to get one so early on in my life!"

The blue haired girl felt her eyes well up with tears again," Oh, Mother...," Robin reached over and pulled her into a comforting hug, smoothing the girl's hair and she clutched her mother.

The white haired girl beamed cheerfully," You are the best daughter a woman could hope for, Lucina."

"Mother...Oh, I've missed you more than you'll ever know!" Lucina cried happily," But now that we have reunited, you guys have to tell me everything!"

Chrom blinked," Err, what do you mean by everything?"

Lucina crossed her legs like an overly enthusiastic child," Well...when did you both realize that you had feelings for each other?"

"Uh, I'm not sure if it's the most...well, appropriate story...," The girl started," I'm not so sure-"

"Please? I never got to hear about it in the future."

The couple shared nervous, yet curious looks. It had never occurred to either of them to share these sorts of things. Naturally, Chrom was the first one to crack," Well, I have always had strong feelings towards your mother...but it was when we first figured out that her parents died that I knew that I wanted to be the one always there for her."

Robin rose her eyebrow," Really? You're telling me that you fell in love with me while I was a sobbing mess?"

"You make it sound weird when you phrase it that way," He answered huffily," Anyways, you haven't told me when you fell for me yet."

"...I'd rather not."

"It's for our daughter."

Robin made the mistake of glancing over at Lucina's puppy dog expression and felt all willpower she held slip away," Ugh...Fine. It was the day I accidentally walked in on you in the shower."

The blue haired teenagers' eyes widened, accompanied by blushes," You s-saw father n-naked?"

"I didn't mean to!" She hid behind her hands," It's just that Chrom got super forgiving and protective afterwards, and it was really sweet."

Her boyfriend smirked coyly," Are you sure that's the only reason? Giaus did say that you got an awful long look at my chest-"

"Chrom!"

Lucina's coughed uncomfortably," Well, I think that I should give you two some alone time. I'm going to take a shower," She abruptly stood up, but paused before entering the bathroom," Mother, please try not to walk in on me too."

"Hey, your father walked in on me before we were even friends!"

The blue haired girl's blush intensified as she placed her hands over her ears," I don't want to hear about this! I'm just going to shower now," With that said, she slammed the bathroom door shut and locked the door, leaving the couple alone.

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Kellam awkwardly stood outside of Cherche's hotel room door, holding his uniform pants uneasily. He felt bad that he was asking her to do this, but he had no other choice; they performed tonight," Um, Cherche? I brought my trousers. They have a hole in them-"

Before he could even finish, the door flew open and the rosy haired girl peeked out," Ooh, look! It's the boy in the adorable jacket! Come on in!"

The brown haired boy followed orders and stood by the wall, giving a shy wave to Olivia. She didn't seem to notice that he had entered at all. Kellam sighed and turned back to the mellophonist," That's not what people call me, is it?"

She shrugged and closed the door," No, but in my opinion, it's the perfect name for you."

"Oh. Well, um, thanks, I guess," He held out his pants," Anyway, I brought my trousers. Can you please mend them?"

Cherche took the clothing out of his hand and observed it," Let me see...Oh, that's nothing! I'll have it fixed in a jiffy."

Kellam smiled in relief," Thanks so much. Sorry again to ask you to do it."

"I don't mind at all," She replied cheerily, sitting on the bed and patting the spot next to her for him to sit," Oh, but while I'm at it, why don't I spruce up your jacket, too?"

"...Spruce it up?"

"Sure! A couple changes here and there would make it look really convincing! Say a few steel spikes on the shoulders? You'd look just like a real rebel," She offered excitedly.

The tuba player shook his head wildly," No! I don't want to look like a rebel!"

"Not even if they're long and pointy?"

"Especially if they're long and pointy!"

Cherche's pouted and pulled out her handy sewing kit," Oh, you're no fun. Right, Olivia?"

The pink haired girl looked up," Um...who are you talking to?"

"Kellam. He's sitting right here."

Olivia almost jumped out of her skin when she noticed the invisible boy," Oh my goodness! I didn't even see him there! I'm sorry, Kellam."

"It's fine. I'm used to it."

The colorguard-ist cringed and turned back to her book," Well, sorry again."

"I don't mind at all, really," Kellam's eyes trailed back to Cherche," Hey, isn't Nowi your other roommate? Where is she?"

"She's on a date with her new boyfriend, Ricken."

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Ricken felt like the luckiest guy on the planet. Just last week, he had confessed to his crush, Nowi, and the two had agreed to start dating. So far, it was a lot of fun; they already went to his house almost every day after school to play the video game they had started, and now, they were on their first date.

They had asked Henry if he had wanted to come along, seeing that he was still somewhat new and hadn't made many friends yet, but he cheerfully waved them off and told them to have fun. He practically pushed the two out of the room to keep them from dragging him along on their first date.

The pair were headed outside of the hotel when a squeal in the lobby stopped them. In a matter of seconds, a girl with light purple hair in two curly pigtails ran up to them, bouncing on her toes in excitement," Oh my gosh, it's Ricken! My dad said that the Ylissien Shepherds were staying in his hotel, but I never expected to meet my biggest inspiration and crush!"

Ricken's eyes widened," Hold on, did you say crush?"

Nowi, on the other hand, latched onto her boyfriend's arm and puffed her cheeks out in annoyance," Nuh uh, no way! He's off the market!"

The girl observed them carefully before crossing her arms and pouting," Oh fooey! There's no way I can hope to compete with someone as pretty as you!" Nowi couldn't help but blush a little bit," Anyways, my name is Tanith! I play the Clarinet, but during marching season I'm on colorguard. I'll be with the Chon'sin team if you guys would like to watch...after all, it is our last performance as a band."

The auburn haired boy tilted his head," What do you mean?"

"Our band teacher, Mr. Katani, disappeared about a week ago. Without a teacher, there is no band. Their shutting our music program down."

"That's terrible! Is there anything anyone can do about it?"

Tanith shrugged softly," If we find Mr. Katani, then he would come back and fight for us. The police say that they're working hard on finding him, but seeing that the crime rate is so high here, they've probably forgotten about him already."

Nowi squeezed Ricken's hand, edging him on to say something," Well, if you ever need any help, the Shepherds are always there."

The purple haired girl smiled," Thank you."

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Stahl had taken up Chrom's advice and was headed off to the most secluded place he could think of to try his hand at playing guitar. Luckily for him, the hotel was mostly empty, so no one would stop him for interrogation.

Just as he was about to step on the elevator, the sound of music reached his ears. Almost as if he was in a daze of sorts, he followed the sound all the way to Cordelia's room. Before he could help himself, he spoke up," Tickling the old strings again, are we?"

The redhead looked up from her spot on the bed and smiled," Why, hello, Stahl. Yes, I was- Um, is that a guitar?"

Stahl gulped and tried to hide the instrument behind his back. When that didn't seem to work, he gave up and told her the truth," I was...uh...going to try and...uh...practice."

Cordelia rose her eyebrows in amusement," Heh. Sounds like someone is itching to play a duet!"

"Well, at some point, sure. But right now I can barely make noise on this thing. I was hoping you might be my teacher instead of my duet partner," The olive haired boy's eyes widened when he realized what he had just said," That is, if you want to."

The redhead pondered his offer before patting the spot next to her," I've never taught before, but I'd be happy to help."

Stahl nearly jumped for joy, but managed to keep his composture together as he took his seat," Thank you so much! I'm going to practice like a madman until I'm good enough to play with you. I'll practice until my fingers are bloody and raw! I'll practice until my eyes-"

The girl held up her hand to stop him," Well, it's...good to have a goal."

Stahl smiled sheepishly," Hey, I'm just trying to be as dedicated to things as you are, Cordelia."

"Heh. Perhaps I have been TOO dedicated...," It was true. Ever since she had figured out that Robin had a huge crush on Chrom, she had been focusing all of her energy in day to day tasks that would keep her from thinking about them. Of course Sumia and Robin had noticed, but when people like Stahl were taking note of it, it meant that she was getting out of hand. Cordelia shook her head and forced a grin," Speaking of which, I think we should start your lesson. Now, watch carefully as I pluck the first few bars of this song."

"You have my undivided attention."

Cordelia peeked up at the boy, shocked to find his eyes wide open without blinking," Er, won't your eyes dry out if you keep them open so wide?" He shook his head," Er, right, then. Never mind. Let me begin," She took a deep breath and plucked at the first note, immediately relaxing at the sound. She was about to go on, but a low whistle interrupted her," What?"

Stahl stared at her dreamily," Wow, you played that note so beautifully..."

Cordelia felt her cheeks go red and stiffened up," Huh? No, I didn't!"

"No, no! The tone was lovely!"

Once again, she held up her hand to silence him," Stahl, it's just one note. Will you please let me finish?"

Stahl shrank in his seat," Er, yes. Right. Sorry. Go ahead."

The redhead poised herself to play again, but the feeling she had gained was already lost. Great, now she was going to let Stahl, who had little to nothing to do with her problems, down,"...Look, I don't think I'm quite ready for teaching. Give me some time to work out a lesson plan, okay? I don't want to do this until I'm sure my methods are sound."

Stahl frowned as she escorted him to the door," But, Cordelia-"

"I'll see you tonight! I promise I'll work on my methods after the show if we don't do anything. Bye!" She shut the door and slid down against it, cursing herself for being such a rude, imperfect person. None of it was Stahl's fault, and now he was getting flack from her. She was the worst person ever.

Stahl, on the other hand, was grinning," Gods, she's more of a perfectionist than I thought!" With a newfound source of determination, he turned on his heel and headed towards his spot to practice," This is going to be tough."

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The Shepherds, all dressed in their marching uniforms with instruments in hands, waited anxiously in Chon'sin's locker-room. They were up to play next, after Plegia's marching band. Chrom, who stood at the head of the room, looked over his fellow band members; Sumia was sitting in the corner with Cordelia, plucking petals from a poor flower in order to get a good fortune. Gaius could be seen sitting in the corner with his arms crossed, watching the brunette with interest and chewing in his lollipop nervously. If it had been the beginning of the year, the ginger wouldn't of cared about the stupid band, but after everything they had gone through...

Chrom turned his attention to another one of the new members, Lon'qu. Instead of looking nervous about the fact that he was wedged between Tiki and Nowi, two other percussionists, there was a strong sense of determination on his face. Tiki, although a bit nervous, kept her composture together as well as she chatted with Anna. The redhead, on the other hand, looked incredibly nervous and depressed. He had heard that none of her family members were coming to support her, which tugged on his heartstrings a little bit. After all the hard work she had done, they still wouldn't except that she left the concession stand business for band.

Chrom heard a creak behind him, and he was surprised to find Henry intently listening to his old band's show. Although he was smiling, it was obvious that there was a small part of him that missed his old school. It was funny that despite him being the shiftiest Plegian he had met (aside from Gangrel, of course), Chrom still trusted the white haired boy to help them carry the show. Speaking of white haired Plegians...

He turned his attention to Robin, who, although a bit nervous, was determine beyond belief. She noticed him staring at her and smiled encouragingly, which made his heart flutter slightly. It had been a weird day, starting with her almost being kidnapped and ending with them trying to decide how to take care of Lucina. It was still hard to believe that he had a daughter with Robin, but it also made him the happiest man on earth. It was a nice change to gain a family member instead of lose one.

"Hey," Everyone in the near silent room turned to Henry, whose ear was now completely pressed against the door," They've stopped playing."

Already? Chrom took a deep breath and stood on top of the bench," Alright, Shepherds, get ready to march-"

Henry shook his head," No, they stopped playing halfway through the second song. They're supposed to have four songs in their set. Something must have changed their mind."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it could have something to do with the fact that we were halfway through the song when our teacher, Mr. Mustafa, told us the news about Miss Emmeryn's passing. Gangrel laughed at the fact and told us that it was a sign of good luck, and that her death should be our motivation to conquer."

Frederick tapped his chin thoughtfully," It seems many of their students are opposed to further violence. I wasn't sure if they were rumors or not, but I've Heard stories about infighting and desertion...Gangrel is trying to stamp out the mutiny by force, but with little success. Outside of a few faithful who serve him directly, his band has all but collapsed."

Robin crossed her arms," Do you think that is why he tried to hold me hostage? Was it out of desperation?"

"It all makes sense now," Chrom's face tilted into a large grin," This is incredible news! But why?" Suddenly, it was all clear,"..Emmeryn."

Their band teacher smiled sadly," Yes, Emmeryn. Mustafa has told me stories about Gangrel's members chanting her name as they abandoned their practice field. Her words, and her sacrifice, have made her a folk hero of sorts."

"Emmeryn... Why did it take me so long to understand? She believed all people desire peace. She knew, deep down, the Plegians wanted it, too. It just took her to bring it to the surface," Robin smiled and took his hand in hers," I hope she can see this, wherever she is...," He squeezed his girlfriend's hand and turned back to his band," But today we prove that Ylisse's band is just as good as any other! Whose with me?!"

The locker-room erupted in cheers by old and new members alike. No matter how long they may have been part of the Shepherds, everyone was determined to put their name back on the map. With this newfound purpose, they all lined up and prepared to march onto the field. Robin nudged Chrom and beamed," Ready to do this?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

She nodded in understanding," Me too. Oh, and Chrom?"

"Hmm?"

Without warning, she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly," Thank you for asking me to be drum major with you. It has been the best experience and has changed my life for the better in so many ways," She leaned into his ear and whispered," I love you."

Chrom swelled with joy and whispered back," I love you too. Honestly, I think I'm the one that is blessed to have met you. Without you, I would probably still be in mourning with a sucky drill for our band and no daughter. Not only have you changed me for the better, but you have helped the band fulfill it's true potential," The two pulled apart and marched to the head of the line," Hey Robin?"

"Yeah?"

"Now I'm ready."

The band marched onto the field, listening to the steady voice of the announcer as he introduced the band. The two drum majors got onto their podiums, waiting until the man was done to start their music. With a shared nod, the two swung down in unison, starting the first piece.

It was as if it was a whole different band; it didn't matter how small the Shepherds actually were, the sound they produced blended perfectly and filled the entire stadium. Anna and Olivia were right on with each other and had fluid movements that perfectly represent the pieces. Every solo was clear and beautifully played, no matter how old or young the soloist may have been. Everyone's legs moved in place with each other, making it look more like an army than a high school band.

Chrom didn't even notice that the last note had been played because he had been so lost in the music. He was shaken out of his daze when the crowd roared with cheers, chanting their band name over and over again. The blue haired boy smiled in pure joy and glanced over at Robin, who had tears of happiness trailing down her cheeks.

After marching off the field, the band huddled in a group and celebrated while waiting to hear their score. Since they were also the last band to play, they would probably hear what three bands were moving on to state before they got their score, but no one seemed to care about that; Sumia, Cordelia, and Robin were all bawling in a large group hug, Olivia and Anna were holding on to each other tightly in joy, Chrom and Stahl were chatting excitedly with each other about forming an after party to celebrate their success. Nowi had kissed Ricken, Lissa had one arm around Maribelle and the other around Henry, Panne and Sully were discussing their performance with smiles on their faces, Cherche hugged Kellam, Bryony broke out of her gloomy character and wrapped her arms around Donnell, May and Hadlee were squealing and jumping up and down, and everyone else was exchanging high fives and handshakes. Even Lon'qu had allowed Vaike to pat him on the back and challenge him for something later on. Everyone was in bliss.

Suddenly, the announcer spoke up," _Hello everybody! We would like to start off by thanking you for coming to Districts! It was a pleasure to have you here! Now, it's time for the moment you've all been waiting for; Placements. In third place, we have Rosanne's Marching Rockets! In second place, we have Chon'sin's retiring marching band. What a last show they put on! In their place, Southtown's marching band will be headed to state! And now, taking first place for the first time in years, we have...Ylisse's Marching Shepherds!"_

The Shepherds stood in shock as the crowd burst into applause and cheering. It took the, a full minute for everything to sink in, and once it did, they yelled just as loudly as the audience. Without warning, the band hoisted both Chrom and Robin on their shoulders, singing the Ylissian fight song with newfound pride.

After almost half an hour of celebrating, almost everyone had dispersed, leaving Chrom and Robin alone on the field," We won."

For them, winning was a bittersweet moment. While they were immensely proud of their fellow band members, they had now come across the problem of whether or not they should reveal their relationship. So, instead of going to the after party, they were sitting in the bleachers trying to figure out the best solution," Having troubles with something?" The two drearily glanced up at Frederick, who watched them with concern," You do know that you can speak with me about anything, right?" When neither of them spoke again, the band teacher sighed and continued on," I know about your secret relationship."

Robin's head shot up," What? How?"

"I have practically raised Chrom, it would be more surprising if I hadn't caught on," The man replied nonchalantly," Anyways, we all saw it coming. While I am the only one that knows, I do suggest that you stop keeping it a secret. You have just led us to state, after all. We have complete trust in you two."

The couple shared a look between each other before nodding in agreement," Thank you, Frederick," Chrom smiled," You always know what to say-"

Before he could finish, Lucina snuck up behind and tackled both of her parents into a hug," You guys were so great!"

"...Why is Marth hugging you two?"

The blue haired girl froze up when she noticed that they had company. In a matter of seconds, she straightened up," Uh...well...I...uh-"

"Lucina?" Everyone turned around to find a timid brunette," These are your parents, right?"

The girl nodded pridefully," Yup! They're the best!"

Frederick blinked, thoroughly confused," Did she call you two her parents?"

Lucina ignore his comment and took her friend's hand, leading her over to the couple," Mom, dad, this is my best friend, Noire-"

"Noire?!" Frederick squeaked.

The girl looked past Lucina's parents and nearly jumped out of her skin when she noticed that her father was standing right behind them. She quickly bowed her head down," Oh...uh...oh dear, I...uh...well...," Suddenly, her face twisted in anger," LUCINA! YOU SET THIS UP, DIDN'T YOU! YOU KNOW I DON'T WANT FATHER TO THINK ANY LESS OF ME BECAUSE I'M A FREAK!" Realizing what she had just done, Noire shrank as much as she could," S-Sorry."

"...I'm your father?" Frederick slowly approached her," H-How is this even possible?"

Lucina spoke up," Mayor Naga hired an elite team of scientists to try and create the portal. We were some of the volunteers, but we're not sure how many other children have survived. I only found Noire about three weeks ago, and I haven't seen a trace of anyone else."

"I don't understand. Why would you even want to travel back in time?"

Noire fiddled with her sleeve, something Frederick immediately picked up. Much like Chrom, he was aware of Robin's nervous habits, and seeing that she was his daughter's babysitter...He gulped and reached his hand out, unsure of how his daughter would react," You look so much like your mother."

The brown haired girl's hand froze," Y-You believe me? But you are always so wary-"

"I am also observant. Firstly, you have your mother's eyes and my hair color. You look to be around 18 or 19 years old, which is a reasonable age presuming that you come from the future. There is the obvious fact that you share my daughter's name, but you also seem to have similar side affects to being terrorized by that cult leader as my child will most likely have. You are friends with Marth, whose real name is Lucina. I'm assuming that she is Chrom's child, seeing that she shares the same name as his mother and a similar hair color. The one thing that tied me over, though, was that you have the same nervous habit as Robin, who is your current babysitter."

Noire waved shyly at the white haired girl," She also raised me after you died and mother...well..."

Frederick frowned," How could I have let myself die when I had a beautiful daughter to look after?"

It was that moment when the girl lost it and jumped into her father's arms, sobbing like a lost child. Frederick had to keep some of his own tears in as he held his daughter, who suddenly wasn't a baby anymore. Lucina sat in between her parents and watched at her best friend and godfather reunited, altogether glad that she had pushed them to meet each other. Still, there was that nagging feeling in her gut that had haunted her ever since Ylisse was granted the state title.

In the midst of the celebration, she had seen a familiar blonde girl jumping up and down with someone who was dead in her time. Lucina was almost positive that she had seen the girl before, and was going to make sure to stick around so that she could discover if her suspicions were correct.

After all, Lucina really missed Emmylene.

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**Lots of information and stuff happening in this chapter. I was going to start with my summary, but I thought of something that is important; DON'T TELL ME MAJOR SPOILERS IN THE NEW GAME PLEASE. I want it to be a little bit of a surprise, but brief things like character names and stuff don't bother me. Okay, so it is EmmYLENE, not EmmERYN. Secondly, who do you think she is? I have mentioned her in my comment response sessions briefly, so see if you can figure that out! So Robin and Chrom are Lucina's parents, and they're going to try and figure out a way to keep the family together. Noire got reintroduced again and a more permanant character now that she reunited with Freddy! Got some Kerche in there, along with Stahldelia and Rowi! Oh, and Tanith is not like Marie; She is like all of us fangirls who realize that their man (haha, she likes Ricken) already has a lady. Fun Fact, Tanith was one of my Avatars! She is a trickster and actually married Ricken, but she's going to end up with an OC for this story because Ricken is taken. Speaking of her, Chon'sin's marching band is shutting down. Wonder where they'll go...(hint hint). Review time!  
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**Amy47101:**** I'd actually love to write a one-shot for you! I just didn't know when your birthday was (I found it ironic because mine was last Saturday), but I'll try to write it in my freetime! I had a pretty good feeling that you were teasing, but I wasn't sure, so I apologized anyways. I'm glad you're cool with it, though! Gaius and Sumia will definitely be in the next chapter, but they don't know that Chrobin is a thing. Spoilers ensue (I'm not exactly sure if ensue is a word, but you get the idea). It's funny, because Stahl and Cordelia are slowly coming together at their own pace, but Chrobin doesn't have the patience for that. I've seen Joker, and must I say, he is quite the catch. I think I'm going to stick with Cyrus, but hey, I thought I was going to marry Stahl my first playthrough...Yes, Marriage and children are back! I'm not sure how children are going to work, but I'm not complaining. Thanks for reviewing!**

**Moonlight's Glow: ****It's cool, I'm glad you got to review on the (now) last chapter! Sorry about the OliviaxHenry stuff, I might get around to writing a one shot about them. It might take a while to write because I'm sort of busy, so let's hope for the best! Yes, the tea is a support! I love Lissa and Maribelle as cannon friends, so I pulled some friend supports in there! Well, Chrom and Robin were in the very front of the bus, and Frederick was in the seat in front of that. He just turned around and took it, and certain people did see him. It will come up in future chapters. The two band OTPs are Chrobin and Stahldelia. Plus, everyone loves Rowi and Olivi'qu. Only Olivia and Maribelle know about Lisry (tell me if you come up with a better ship name for that one). Classic is hard (I had to start over because I got the actual game for my birthday so I could have my own instead of sharing with my brother), but it's much easier the second time for some reason...If I could suggest something, make Defense your strenght because you start with an okay resistance and there are more weapon users in the beginning of the game. I'm sorry that your colorguard endeavors didn't work out the way it was supposed to, but I wish you guys the best of luck for your upcoming marching season! I had to make Tiki famous because she is the daughter of a god in the game, so...(I actually switched that around a bit in this version). If Anna had asked for much more, I feel that her roommates would have strangled her, haha. Thanks for commenting! **

**So, next chapter will be up on Saturday as usual. Thank you to those who have commented and read (I just saw that most of my chapters have over 200 views!)! The next chapter will wrap up Districts and the first half of the story, so stay tuned! You can also guess who the next child found will be! Alrighty guys, thanks for reading! Love ya!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	20. Chapter 20 A Web of Lies

**Hey guys! Happy 4th of July (if you celebrate it. If not, happy unbirthday!)! I only worked one day this week, but that means that I didn't have to write the entire chapter on a Saturday morning! And must I say, this chapter...this chapter. The sadistic part of me loves this chapter, because I cringed when writing certain stuff. The best part is that there isn't even any violence in it, so...I don't even know how to begin explaining for the sake of avoiding spoilers. I guess I should just remind you of certain things that are definitely coming up in this chapter; Robin doesn't trust Gaius, both Gaius and Robin have the Grimleal mark, Gaius and Sumia ship Chrobin, Chrobin ships Stahldelia, and at the beginning of the year, Gaius's "Friends" made a game out of...well, "doing the do" with a certain girl in school. His friends are under the impression that Gaius is "doing the do" with Sumia. Alright, I think that's about it. Enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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It all started the morning after Districts ended. Everyone was all packed up and ready to head back Ylisse with high spirits. There was rumor of a few Chon'sin students transferring to their school on Monday, and with the addition of Chrom's "long lost cousin", Lucina, and Frederick's "younger sister", Noire, everyone was excited to make their band larger.

Gaius, on the other hand, had been scheming for a long time. After several plans beings thrown into the waste bin, he had finally come up with a way to set Chrom and Robin together. What he'd do is tell Chrom that he asked Sumia out to the movies, but her parents said they couldn't go alone. He'd ask Chrom to come along with whichever girl he wanted (which would most definitely be Robin), and hopefully by the end of the night, Chrobin would become a real thing.

The ginger made his first move as soon as the bus left; he shimmied his way up to the front of the vehicle and slid into the seat behind the soon to be couple," Hey Chrom, I have a huge favor to ask of you."

The blue haired boy, along with his fellow drum major, rose his eyebrow suspiciously," What is it?"

"You see, I've developed this crush on Stu-I mean, Sumia. I asked her out, but her parents have this rule; For the first few dates we go on, we have to have another person there to supervise and make sure we don't do anything naughty. So I was thinking, who would want to tag along awkwardly on a date? Then it came to me; Why don't you come and bring some girl along so it's like a double date and we don't have to all be awkward?"

Robin narrowed her eyes," How are we supposed to know you actually like Sumia, hmm? You've avoided her since the beginning of the year."

Damn, why did Chrom have to get a smart girlfriend-to-be? The candy lover searched his brain for a reasonable answer, but only came across the cheesiest one he knew of," She's so beautiful, her presence makes me nervous."

"So you're too "afraid" to approach her, but when you actually talk to her, you tell her not to date other guys?" Robin's glare intensified," I don't believe you."

Gaius bit his lip nervously, desperately trying to climb out of the grave he was digging himself," Okay, you have a fair point...I'm not good at expressing myself, Bubbles. Why do you think I haven't told Chrom he's probably my best friend? I'm bad at it," Chrom smiled at that, but the look Robin was giving him pushed Gaius to continue talking," But I understand if you don't want to come and support our relationship. I guess I'll ask Stahl or something, he seems pretty chill-"

"Did you say Stahl?" As if someone had flicked a light switch in her head, Robin became perky," Well, I have a great idea! Why don't you have Stahl bring Cordelia! Neither of them are dating anyone, and I feel that they'd be a great couple."

Sensing where his partner was going, Chrom added on," I'll go if you bring Stahl and Cordelia."

Stahl and Cordelia? What did that have to do with anything? They were supposed to be setting Chrobin up together, not Stahldelia (dear gods, he had just given them a ship name. He was turning into Sumia)! Still, if that was the only way they'd come...Gaius scowled," Okay, fine. They can come, but that means that you have to be there!"

Chrom gave his friend a thumbs up," I won't miss it. Text me when you have the details."

The ginger shook his head as he walked away, making his way over to Sumia and Cordelia's seats. Without warning, he plopped into the seat directly in between Lissa and Maribelle to lean over and talk to the brunette and redhead," Hey, Robin sent me over to tell you guys that she was planning on going to see a movie tonight in celebration of winning. You guys in?"

Sumia quirked her eyebrow," Why didn't she just text us?"

"Her phone is dead."

"That's unlike her to forget to charge it before a long trip."

Gaius gave her a pointed look, silently telling her that he'd explain everything to her later," So are you guys going to let Robin down or are you going to get some weekend in before school starts back up?"

"Hey!" The ginger turned in his seat, only to be met with an annoyed Lissa," Did we get invited too?"

"Don't you guys have homework or something?" Gaius mumbled, praying that it was true.

Maribelle snorted," Of course not. We finished it before the trip so that we could be stress free and play our best. This frees us up for the girls night."

"But-"

"I'm fine with them coming," Cordelia chipped in," Actually, I haven't hung out with either of you for a long time. It'd be fun!"

Gaius really wanted to jump off of the bus at that moment, but he managed to keep his composture together," Alright. I hope you guys have fun," He almost gritted out the last words, but made a break for it as soon as he felt it. He collapsed back into his seat next to Stahl's and nudged him," Hey, Chrom is having a bunch of people from the band go to the movies tonight. You coming?"

The olive haired boy tilted his head," Will there be food?"

"...It's a movie theater. Of course there'll be food."

"Okay, I'll go."

So, what turned out to be a relatively simple plan quickly morphed into a web of lies and a grave slowly swallowing Gaius alive. This alone kept the ginger from relaxing for the entire duration of the return trip. He tried hard to ignore the glares he kept receiving from Robin, the curious glances from Cordelia, and the worried looks from Sumia. By the time the bus stopped, Gaius's anxiety was starting to eat him alive.

As the boy exited the vehicle, he was surprised to find Sumia waiting for him. She tilted her head to the side, motioning for him to talk with her in private. As soon as they were out of hearing range of the other students, she quirked her eyebrow," Why did you deliver the message about girl's night earlier? It doesn't seem like something you'd care about."

Without warning, Gaius blurted out all of his worries," It all started as a ploy to get Bubbles and Blue together, but then they said they'd only go if Foodie and Mother went, and then Princess and Twinkles invited themselves. Half of the people are under the impression that they are going out for a celebration, and the other half thinks that they're going on a double date with us."

"Us?"

His face suddenly turned scarlet as he ran his hand through his hair," That's what I told our dear drum majors...they're under the impression that we're dating."

Sumia's cheeks brushed pink," O-Oh?"

"It was the only excuse I could come up with that sounded reasonable."

She bit her lip bashfully," And I was the first girl to come to mind?"

She had a point; he could've picked any other girl in band, yet Sumia was the first he thought of. They weren't that close, save the few schemes they had conjured up to get their friends together. In fact, he was avoiding her at all costs at the beginning of the year so that his friends wouldn't make assumptions. Somehow, something had changed between now and then; Instead of dreading the moments he had to be in the same room as her, he was...okay with it? No, that wasn't the right word. He shrugged, figuring that the feeling would come to him eventually," We are partners in crime now. Why would I choose anyone else?"

Sumia tried to hide the flustered smile breaking out on her face," Really?"

"Duh. We've been working together for weeks on this."

"Of course!" She twirled her fingers around each other," So I'll see you at 8:00?"

Before he could respond, Robin cleared her throat," Come on, Sumia. Sully said she'd give us a ride home," The brunette nodded and scooped her luggage up, rushing off to meet the redhead. Gaius was about to follow suit and find a ride for himself when Robin stopped him," I know Chrom is easily swayed and extremely gullible, but that doesn't mean I am too. I swear, if you do anything to hurt Sumia, I will make sure you regret it."

"Lighten up, Bubbles. I would never-"

"Shut up, I'm not interested in hearing your stories-"

Gaius narrowed his eyes at her," I have a feeling that you have something against me, because if Stumbles was to go out with any other guy, I have a strong feeling that you'd be okay with it."

The white haired girl crossed her arms," Do you want me to count the reasons for you? There's the fact that you basically told her that she's not allowed to date other boys-"

"I never said that!"

"Really? Because I distinctly remember you telling her not to jump into the first relationship she saw," Robin growled," How am I supposed to trust you? You've given me no reason to, especially after I figured out you were a convict!"

Gaius felt his insides boil," I was helping out a friend when I got that mark! I had no choice but to rob that house, our families were starving! You're being incredibly hypocritical right now, even though you're probably either a convict, murderer, or concubine yourself! And who was the one that warned you about that and told you to wear gloves? Me! If I was as evil as you make me out to be, why would I help you?! Do you have an answer to that?!"

She looked as if he had just slapped her in the face. He almost felt bad, but his rage kept him from apologizing. Robin swallowed and tugged on one of her sleeves, making sure to avoid eye contact with him," Just...don't hurt Sumia."

"Who said I was planning on doing that in the first place?!"

Robin's grip on her sleeve tightened," Don't let me down, then," With that, she left him to meet back up with Sumia and Sully, leaving Gaius to mull over what she wanted from him.

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Although it was a fake date, Sumia wanted to make sure she dressed nicely. After an hour of trying on outfit after outfit, she decided on a lavender blouse with a plaid gray skirt, a pale pink cardigan, and matching tights. Once she was satisfied with her looks, she grabbed her purse, locked up the apartment, and ran down to her bike. Robin had left a little over an hour ago to go grocery shopping, so Sumia figured that she'd meet her friend at the movie theater.

The trip usually took about fifteen minutes, but her excitement energized her and got her their in ten minutes. Sumia quickly checked her reflection in the door window before smoothing her hair and entering the building. Inside was already Gaius, who was sitting on the bench with his head in his hands," Gaius? What's wrong?"

"Chrom didn't bring Robin."

Sumia's eyes widened in horror as she dropped onto the seat next to him," W-What? Who did he bring?"

"Oh, hi Sumia!" The brunette turned around to face Chrom, only to find him standing next to his new cousin, Lucina. Behind them were Lissa and Maribelle, chatting excitedly about the girls night out. Apparently Chrom hadn't told them about the double date thing, but then again, he didn't seem to get the concept fully himself," It's funny seeing you here! My cousin and I were just going to see a movie, but it looks like that's just what you and Gaius were doing! Maybe we could make it a group thing!"

"Kill me now," Gaius grumbled under his breath.

Lissa waved excitedly, but unfortunately, Maribelle caught on to what the blue haired boy was saying," Hold on a moment, why is Gaius here? Did you imply that he is going to see a movie with Sumia?"

"I thought that we were having a girls night out," Cordelia, who had just entered the theater a few seconds prior, frowned," Where's Robin? Wasn't this all her idea?"

Chrom shrugged," She said that she wasn't feeling good, so she stayed at home."

The redhead's frown intensified," But she hasn't hung out with us in forever! She's always sneaking around with-" Cordelia froze, realizing what she was about to say," Nevermind."

"Sneaking around with who?" The oldest Exalt questioned almost possessively," I've been around her a bunch, and I haven't seen her hanging around with another person."

Lissa rolled her eyes," I think she's talking about you, big bro."

"Seriously, Stumbles," Gaius groaned," You could end me right now and I wouldn't mind it a bit."

"Oh, yeah that makes sense," Chrom replied nonchalantly," A lot has happened in the past week."

Lucina knew about Cordelia's childhood crush on her father, and knew she had to change the route of the conversation fast to avoid drama," Hey, what movie are we seeing?"

"Have we gotten food already?" Everyone turned around, surprised to find Stahl and Kellam standing behind them," I'm starving."

"What is Kellam doing here?" Gaius hissed. Sumia only shrugged, unsure of how things were falling apart so quickly. It seemed like a semi solid plan at the time, but everything was getting pulled out from underneath them," No offense, but I didn't know you were coming."

"I was sitting in the seat in front of you and was talking to Stahl before you came back and talked to him," Kellam answered sheepishly," I thought that you were inviting both of us."

"Why did you invite boys in the first place?" Lissa whined," I thought it was supposed to be girls night out! You boys can't rip off our fun! Do something else, like play laser tag or play football!"

Maribelle cringed," Not all boys only partake in those activities-" Suddenly, someone accidentally ran into her back, causing her to stumble forward a few feet spill some of her drink on Cordelia," Who dared to-Oh my goodness, Cordelia! I'm so sorry!"

The redhead grimaced as she glanced down at her soaked clothes," You know what? I'm going to leave, because it doesn't seem like girls night out is a real thing."

Chrom shook his head wildly," No, wait! You can't leave yet!"

Cordelia jumped out of her skin," Ack! C-Chrom?!"

"You seem unusually...tense."

"T-tense? M-me? N-no, not at all!" She tried to play it off cool by leaning against a pillar and pretending to admire her nails," See? No tension here!" Gods, she felt like a horrible person. Why couldn't she just tuck her feelings for Chrom under the rug? Robin and him definitely had a thing going on, despite the fact that she didn't show up...what could that mean?

Chrom, on the other hand, was beginning to get confused. No tension? They were in the middle of a weird event where they all came for different reasons, and she wasn't at least a little nervous? She was acting nervous. In fact, she seemed to be the most antsy out of the nine," Er, if you say so...Anyway, are you holding up okay? You seem frantic."

Cordelia waved it off," F-F-Frantic? Oh, er, yes, it is, isn't it...?" What was she thinking? He was talking about her, not everyone! She bit her lip and unknowingly began to pant a little bit.

Just like his friend, Stahl was worried for the girl. While it was heart wrenching to see the girl he liked swoon over his best friend, he didn't want anything to happen to her," Cordelia, are you all right? You sound like you can hardly breathe!"

"O-Of course not! Though I...I AM feeling flushed and hot...but it's nothing to do with Robin lying about girls night... This...this heat is in my soul!" Her eyes dreamily glossed over again," I'm overcome with emotion and drowning with joy! To be blessed with a rare opportunity to speak with Chrom himself... Why, it's almost more excitement then my poor heart can stand!" She squealed the last part and clapped softly.

This time, Chrom wasn't the only one giving her a funny look. Sumia and Maribelle, both of whom knew about their friend's huge crush, cringed. Lissa cocked her head to the side in confusion and began to list off medical terms that could match her behavior in her head. Gaius felt a headache come on as the worst possible things kept happened, knowing all too well that all of the fingers were going to be pointing at him in the end of this. Kellam frowned while Stahl felt his heart being ripped out. After everything he had worked on for her, Cordelia still liked his best friend more than him. Chrom just looked to the side awkwardly," Er..."

Cordelia's eyes bulged out from her head when she realized what she had just done," ARGH! Did I just say that out loud? Oh, GODS, this is mortifying!" Since when did she let her dreams get the best of her, especially in front of her true love?! No! Chrom wasn't her true love! He was Robin's! Cordelia didn't want to get in the way of that, yet here she was! She was stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid-

"...Rare opportunity?" He repeated in confusion," I do try to talk to the my friends whenever I can, you know..."

The red head turned a deep shade of scarlet that rivaled her hair color," Oh! Oh, no! No, that's not what I-I wasn't criticizing you! You're a WONDERFUL drum major, and you ALWAYS take time to talk to your friends! When I say "rare", what I mean is...I just wish we could speak more often, and then... Argh! I'm doing it again! Cordelia—these silly fantasies have got to stop!"

Chrom turned helplessly to Lucina and mouthed What should I say? She was a girl after all, and all girls shared these odd feelings...didn't they? His daughter mouthed back You're on your own, probably because she was equally as puzzled as he. Damn it. Curse girls and their queer way of overthinking things. He wished Robin was there," I'm becoming increasingly confused by this conversation..." He turned to Lucina to see if she approved of his response, but she only dropped her face in her hands. Was that a sign that meant he was doing good or...

"I'm SO sorry, Chrom. I really don't know what's come over me... Perhaps all of this IS getting to me...I'm feeling a little light headed...," Light headed? More like ditzy, she thought miserably.

That was something he could understand," What? Why didn't you say so earlier?! Can you walk? Here, take my arm, and I'll help you over to Lissa and Maribelle, and they can check up on you."

Cordelia's jaw dropped," Y-your ARM? You want me-Cordelia-to...to touch your ARM?! I...I can't take this anymore... I feel so...happy...I could die..."

"Cordelia, no! Don't close your eyes!" He cried frantically, running over to the girl to take her shoulders and shake her," If you see a light, don't go near it! Stay with me!"

"Ohh...I will, Chrom... I WILL... I wouldn't miss this moment for the world... Now, I'll just put my hands here...on your muscular forearm..." She reached out to touch him, but her hand didn't make it past his wrist until it started shaking. No! This wasn't the time to chicken out! This was the moment she had been waiting for!

The blue haired boy was beyond confused, so he mistook her lovesick nerves for a serious illness," What's wrong? Are your hands too weak to grip?"

Cordelia made a feeble effort to touch his toned muscles, but her hand dropped," I...I can't do it! I can't bring myself to touch you! Just the thought of it makes me...makes me..." Without warning, the redhead passed out in his arms, a blissful smile etched on her lips.

The drum major stumbled forward in an attempt to keep her from hitting the ground," Lissa, she passed out! What do I do?"

Sumia gasped into her hands, horrified beyond belief," Oh my gods! Is she alright?"

Stahl, on the other hand, could only allow his face to fall," How am I surprised by this?"

"I didn't know she still had a crush on me, I swear!" Chrom fumbled desperately," I just wanted you two to start spending some quality time together-"

"Wait, you tried setting me up?" The olive haired boy cried," But you only made things worse! I can do things on my own!"

Chrom cringed and set Cordelia down on a bench," That wasn't my intention at all! I only wanted you guys to be happy together-"

"Gregor feels that he ruined everything," Everyone flipped around, only to find the trombonist awkwardly standing behind Maribelle," He did not mean to bump into the pretty lady, it was an accident."

"Hold on, now Gregor's here?! Did anyone actually invite him?!" Gaius cried in frustration.

The Russian boy pouted," Gregor came to the movies by himself."

"Wait a minute," Chrom interrupted," What do you mean you didn't invite him? Did you invite everyone?"

Uh oh.

Lissa nodded," Yeah, I was under the impression that we were having a girls night because Gaius told us that Robin was planning it."

"Girls night?" Stahl tilted his head," I thought that Chrom was just bringing a bunch of his friends together to see a movie. Gaius came back and told us that after he went and talked to you guys."

"Well Gaius told me that he was going on his first date with Sumia and had to bring more people in order to go out," Chrom stated.

"Which one is the truth?" Maribelle interrogated," I doubt it's girls night and Chrom's celebration party."

Kellam added onto that," I also don't think that he'd bring this many people on a date with him."

Gaius wanted to make a break for it badly, but he knew that he'd just be bombarded with even more questions in the morning. He glanced over desperately at Sumia, who gave him an encouraging thumbs up. Well, he had to tell the truth some time," Alright, the thing is-"

"Hey look! It's little Ginger!" If Gaius wanted to run badly before, his fleeing instinct intensified by two-fold when his so called friends, Vasto and Orton, snuck up behind him," What are you doing with all these band nerds?"

"They're my friends-"

Vasto snapped his fingers and pointed to Sumia," Oh, I get it now! You brought your whore here to try and get some in the back rows, didn't you?"

Sumia looked as if someone had just smacked her," W-What? Gaius, what are they talking about?"

"Sumia, I-"

Orton interrupted him and laced his arm around her waist," Didn't you know? Little ginger here has been trying to bed you for a month now! Why else do you think he'd hang around someone as trashy as you?"

Gaius shook his head wildly," No, that's not it at all-" Before he could finish, he felt someone grab him roughly by the shoulders. Much to his surprise, it as Kellam and Stahl," What are you guys doing?! I swear, I'm not going to do anything to her-"

"How are we supposed to believe?" Stahl growled," You've been lying to all of us."

The Saxaphonist really wanted to fight for his own case, but whatever he could've said would be turned against him either way. Chrom, on the other hand, stomped forward and yanked Orton's arm off of Sumia, making sure to pull her away from danger," You've had your fun, now leave."

Orton pouted," Oh come on! Just because her old make out buddy is...out of commission, let's say, doesn't mean that she has to sit in that back row all by herself, if you know what I mean."

"I SWEAR," Gaius boomed," IF YOU SO MUCH AS TOUCH A HAIR ON HER HEAD, I'LL-"

"Do what?" Vasto smirked," You seem a bit restrained right now. I don't blame your buddies; from what I've heard, you haven't been very well behaved as of late."

Chrom stepped in between the two and narrowed his eyes at Vasto and Orton," You have no more business with us here, so leave or get thrown out."

"What are you gonna do? Beat us...," Orton watched in horror as Chrom darkened immensely,"...up?"

Vasto nudged him," Come on, let's go. I'm bored of this."

As the two left, Lissa slowly linked her arm in Maribelle's," I think our movie is going to start soon. We should leave," Her friend nodded in agreement, making sure to send a glare at Gregor as she passed him.

The senior only waved politely back, trying to hold back an exasperated sigh. Once she was gone, his shoulders slumped," Gregor is also going to see his movie now. Does anyone want to join him?"

Stahl rubbed the back of his neck, sending a longing glance back towards his crush," I...no. I think I'm going to take Cordelia back home. Does anyone else need a ride?"

"I think I'll hang out with Gregor and watch that movie," Kellam responded. The Russian boy cheerfully patted him on the back and waved goodbye to everyone, dragging off his new friend to watch the movie with him.

Stahl returned the gesture before wandering to Cordelia and scooping her up on his back," Sumia, do you want a ride home as well?"

The brunette, whose gaze had been fixated on the ground for the past five minutes only answered with the shake of her head. The olive haired boy sighed and patted her shoulder comforting, giving a parting nod to Chrom and Lucina as he left the building.

Although neither of the people restraining Gaius were holding on anymore, he was still to distraught to move. All the relationships that he had accidentally formed and enjoyed were now crushed into a million pieces because of his stupidity. This was why he didn't make friends; he always let them down in some way or another.

Without warning, Sumia spun on her heel and booked it out of the building. The ginger wanted more than anything to run after her, but he wasn't sure she'd understand. Heck, he wasn't sure she'd even want to listen to him.

In all the of commotion, Gaius hadn't noticed that Chrom and his cousin were still waiting for an explanation. Sensing that he wouldn't talk soon, the blue haired boy spoke up," Why? What do you have to gain from all this?"

"They were making a game out of who could bed a girl first, and Sumia was one of the options that they were going to go after. I figured that I would pretend to claim her so that they'd leave her alone, but then I starting to hang around her more and more, and now...I feel really bad."

Chrom ran his hand through his hair," I guess that makes some sense, but why didn't you bring all of us here in the first place?"

Gaius snorted," We were trying to set you up with Robin, but you brought your cousin instead."

"...But I'm already dating Robin."

The boy froze as he felt all of his guilt turn into anger," Wait, you're WHAT?! You mean to tell me that this entire time, you've been secretly hooking up with your drum major buddy and didn't bother telling anyone?! Do you have any idea how much trouble you could've saved me and everyone else here if you had told us?!"

Chrom cringed," I know, and I am truly sorry. We meant to tell people tomorrow. I didn't think that it'd turn into something this bad. If you want, I can talk to everyone for you-"

"Why would I want that?! Do you honestly think that anyone would believe me if I told them the truth? If anything, they'd probably think less of me than they already do!"

Lucina tilted her head," I don't get it. Why would the truth be worst than the lies you've already told to try and cover up everything?"

"The truth scares people, Lucina," Gaius clenched and unclenched his fists," I'm going home. I doubt my foster mom would let me skip school tomorrow, so I guess I'll see you guys then."

Chrom and Lucina watched the hopeless boy leave the building, making them the remaining two. Chrom sighed and nudged his daughter," Come on, I think our movie is starting soon too."

* * *

**Did I accidentally kill you guys? This chapter made me cringe A LOT while writing it. Well, I should start off by saying that in my original plot, Gaius's plan worked and only Chrom and Robin showed up, only for them to reveal that they were already dating. Then, as I wrote the chapter, I remembered that Robin doesn't trust Gaius to date Sumia because she thinks he'd break her heart (which he did unintentionally). Then I was like _Hey, why not put some Stahldelia in the mix? Wouldn't that be fun? _As I was writing further into it, I realized that Robin would not be a good person to come to the date, so I had Lucina go to make things bad from the beginning for Gaius. I only meant to have Cordelia go, but I'm positive that Lissa would worm her way into coming as well. Then I had Stahl go, but I was like _Poor Stahl would be all alone because Cordelia won't automatically fall in love with him. _That was my motivation to have Kellam go, which was a spur of the moment thing. Secondly, Chrom without Robin on a date scenario with Cordelia in the room would not end well (Fun fact; that scene with Cordelia and Chrom was originally supposed to be during the ambush at the train station, but it didn't make as much sense to me there). Cue my first cringing moment; Having Stahl see that girl he really liked swoon over his best friend. Yikes. Then Gregor came because his relationship with Maribelle starts by him annoying the crap out of her unintentionally. My second cringe moment was when Gaius's friends showed up and said ****_Why else do you think he'd hang around someone as trashy as you? _(It made me cringe just now as I read it). Then everyone except Chrom and Lucina basically turned against Gaius (poor guy). What makes this chapter horribly fun to look back on is that it all could've been prevented if Chrom told Gaius about his relationship. If that's not a punch to the gut, then I don't know what it. Bwahaha. Review Time!  
**

**Amy47101:**** Alright, so even though it is not my main ship, I actually started writing the HenryxOlivia story and it's a lot more fun than I thought it would be. The chapter is divided into their supports, much like this story is, but it goes deeper into the context of what is happening during, before, or after those supports happen. I'm hoping to post it sometime next week. I love daddy Frederick for Noire because she is so timid and he would be one to stand up for her (in that intimidating dad way). Hehe, Gaius and Sumia's relationship is fun to write, because unlike the prior relationships, this one is having some trouble getting together. So far, I feel like they are the most real couple to be forming, because I almost considered having them make up at the end of this chapter, but then I realized that that kind of stuff is going to take some time, and even then, they are going to be slow to trust each other. Woohoo for spellcheck! Lucina is actually going to have a part in helping Gaius and Sumia eventually come together, so yay for her! I'm cool with both names for Joker/Jakob, but Marx being changed to Xavier (or something) is what kills me because Marx is a cooler name (for that specific character). Good luck with writing! I'm keeping myself from looking too deeply into the game because I don't want spoilers, but I would love to read it eventually! Speaking of which, I would love to read your current fic as soon as I come across some time (which will probably end up being yesterday night, because I wrote all this on Friday instead of Saturday because of the 4th of July). Frederick is a cool cat, but no one can really compare to Chrom for me. I started playing Awakening because I was really interested in the characters (I learned about them from Smash Brothers) and my older brother offered to let me play it on his D.S. Here I am, half a year later becoming more active with other video games (mainly nintendo ones) and writing a fanfic with great fans! I was once incredibly lonely as well, back in my middle school days, but I'm glad that you're okay now (it's not pathetic at all, I think that everyone goes through their own version of it sometime in their life). Thank you for commenting, and I plan on taking a look at your fanfic! **

**Kit-Cat Star:** **Thank you! I was a bit rushed while writing it, but there is some evidence that might make it more understanding; When Lucina was Marth in the 7th chapter (I think...the one where we learned Chrom's backstory), she told Chrom that she was from the future and (being the gullible idiot he is) he believed her. Falchion is a key factor, because only certain Exalts can play it (and she has her own Falchion). I may have mentioned in somewhere in either one of my past forewords or afterwards, but this story is on a thin line that barely makes it realistic. While there is not magic, there is definitely time travel, which is only possible because it is in the future where people are incredibly desperate to change the past (Sorry if it's a bad explanation for the events, it is just really hard to find another way for future children to come back in a modern setting). I'm glad you liked the rest of the chapter! Noire has always been one of my favorites as well, especially with her relationship with her dad. Thanks for commenting!**

**The weasel is MINE XP:**** Welcome back! It's fine, I totally understand that life can get in the way of a lot of things. I'm just glad I get to talk to you again! Woohoo! Chrobin is indeed cannon now, and will become official to the Shepherds in next week's chapter (Sorry Gaius...)! As you may or may not know, there have always been plot points in this story (some chapters are spur of the moment ideas), and them going to state has always been an official part! The next half of the story is going to be a little more tricky because I don't have as many plot points set out. I just know how it's going to end (which is both a good thing and a bad thing). What I do know is that the rest of the kids and Say'ri are coming, Walhart is coming, and...spoilers. Yes, the mysterious band person. The person who I've known is there since, like, SPOILERS. You may or may not discover her in the next chapter, I'm not sure yet. Can't wait to hear from you, band buddy! Thanks for commenting!**

**Okie dokie, this chapter is the end of the first part of this story. The next part focuses on the troubles that a higher competition (State preparations), a new principal, and future children bring. I'm excited to say there has been 20 chapters with 60 comments and almost 10,000 views! I'm excited to see what next half of the story holds for us, so hold onto your hats! It's going to be a wild ride! Thanks for reading!  
**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	21. Chapter 21 Emmylene

**Hey guys. This chapter is noticeably shorter than the others because I had such a bad writers block for what to do in this chapter. So much for a grand Part 2 opener...eh. The next chapter will be better because I know what I'm doing with it. Anywho, we get a few new characters introduced into this chapter and a few that you may or may not remember (a.k.a, May and Tanith). I think that's all I'll say here, but if you usually only read these forwards and not the afterwards, READ THE AFTERWARDS TODAY! IT IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT! Now that that is out of the way, enjoy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

_Robin was under the impression that everything would settle down after Districts. After all, she was finally together with Chrom and the Shepherds were headed to state. Plegia was hardly a problem anymore because of Gangrel's disappearance after the competition, and there hadn't been a Grimleal attack since Emmeryn's assassination. Things seemed to finally be looking up for them._

_She couldn't have been more wrong._

_After the arrival of her daughter from the future, everything starts to take a turn for the worst. With the arrival of Chon'sin students comes the mysterious disappearance of their band teacher, Yen'fay Katani, and a principal who is heavily suspicious of anyone with the Grimleal mark. It seems that everything is in a slow spiral towards an unavoidable fate. Is it true that anything can change, or will Robin have to take drastic measures in order to protect the future?_

**Part 2: The Invisible Ties to an Unscripted Fate**

* * *

To say Tanith was nervous was a huge understatement. While she did admire the Shepherds largely, leaving her home behind to help Say'ri was a huge challenge, especially since she was only 16. She also horrible about lying to her father about their intentions; she had told him that they were going on a short exchange trial to enhance her marching band experience and get the chance to go to state, but in all honesty, they were attending the school in order to spy on Ylisse's new principal.

She hadn't heard much about the man, other than his name was Mr. Walhart. It was rumored that he was a general in the army before he went to school to get a master's degree in educational leadership. What made him stand out was the fact that he was the last person Say'ri's older brother and their band teacher, Yen'fay Katani, saw before his disappearance. While there was no evidence against him, Say'ri was incredibly suspicious and wanted to investigate discreetly.

The only people that knew about this were herself, Tanith, and their last ally in the secret plan, Cobalt. Say'ri had the utmost trust in the two and made them promise not to tell anyone about their reasons in order to avoid Walhart coming after either of them. She had repeated over and over again that their safety was far more important than their mission, and if they felt that they were in danger, they should evacuate as soon as possible. That alone greatly unnerved Tanith.

Yet, here she was in the apartment Say'ri had rented getting ready for their first day at Ylisse High. In a way, she felt like she was fighting for Chon'sin's music program by doing this, and there was no way she'd back down. Even with all the rumors she had heard about Ylisse slowly spiraling into a dangerous city, she kept her head held high and prepared for what would be the most daring adventure she had ever encountered.

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Robin didn't want to say that she in Chrom were in a fight; It was more like a disagreement. She couldn't understand why he was on Gaius's side, and he was desperately trying to make her understand why Gaius had done what he had. Both ends were incredibly frustrated and hardheaded, refusing to see the other's point of view.

Even with all that, Robin wasn't mad at him. Sure, she had no idea why he would side with the guy who was trying to seduce her best friend, but she also knew that Chrom wasn't an idiot. Yes, he was incredibly gullible, but if he knew that someone was planning something that would hurt one of his friends, he wouldn't stand for it.

It was because of this that they forgot to announce that they were a couple.

Lucina, on The other hand, was beginning to get stressed out. Not only had Sumia and Gaius ruined any chances of ever getting together because of their stubbornness, but now tensions were raising between her own parents. If you added school on top of that, she was on the verge of another breakdown. After all, she had only learned what her mother had taught her when they were homeschooled. The complexity of everything was overwhelming to say the least. It wasn't like she could talk to either of her parents about it either; they had enough on their plates as it was.

So that was how she ended up talking to her aunt in the band room during lunch on Monday," It's all a lot harder than I thought it would be, Aunt Lissa."

Lissa hummed in agreement, stirring her salad aimlessly with her fork," Yeah, I can remember feeling that was when I was a freshman. It must be even worse for you, seeing how you have to stress out about blending in and keeping your secret."

"That, and making sure that all of my friends' parents still get together."

"Right-wait, what?" The blonde tilted her head," The thought never occurred to me. Am I married? Do I get to have cute little children too?"

The blue haired girl giggled at her aunt's antics," Of course, but I can't tell you who you marry. That might alter timelines and...you know."

"Oh fine, but can you at least tell me about my kids?"

"...I can't see why not. You'll probably meet them anyways. Your oldest child's name is Owain, and he's pretty eccentric. While a bit strange, he was there when my...," Her voice trailed off, pain slowly engulfing her features," Nevermind. Let's just say that Owain is very close to me, and I don't know if I'd be here without him. Then you have Emmylene, but we call her Emmy for short. She is a bit timid, but extremely friendly to those who talk to her. She lost you and her husband when she was pretty young, so bringing you guys up is a sore subject for her. She looks exactly like you do, but with shorter hair and softer features."

Lissa furrowed her eyebrows," Really? That sounds pretty close to the personality of-Wait, what am I thinking? Just ignore me, I'm babbling," Desperate for a change of subject, she brought up an earlier point," What did you mean by worrying that some of your friends' parents may not get together?"

"Gaius and Sumia got in a pretty big fight-"

"Hold the phone! Are you telling me that they get together in the future?!"

Lucina nodded, confused to why this wouldn't make sense. They seemed perfectly happy and in love in the future, but then again, this was another timeline. She had to remind herself that things were changing constantly," Hopefully...Aunt Lissa, I don't know what to do."

The blonde folded her hands together, contemplating the right solution," I think that this is where you take your future into your own hands.

Suddenly, everything clicked in the niece's head. Lissa was completely right; she had the ability to change things back so that her and her friends could get a happy ending. That was why she had come to the past in the first place," Thanks Aunt Lissa, you're the greatest!"

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As much as she hated to admit it, Bryony really liked getting compliments from Donnel.

True to his word, he would tell her ten good things about her every single day, whether it be them passing each other in the halls or him leaving a cute little note in her locker. It made her forget about the hardships of missing her dad or feeling homesick. Whenever she heard one of his lovely comments or read a sweet letter, all of her problems would just disappear.

So, it was only natural that a crush on him formed. Bryony had to admit that if you had asked her a month or so ago, she would've scoffed. Now things were different, and she couldn't deny her newfound feelings for the country bumpkin.

With her new crush came new anxiety. What if he didn't like her that way back? She was fully aware of how silly that sounded, but who could blame her? Her parents seemed completely in love, but then they got a divorce and made Bryony move halfway across the state with her mom.

Cherche seemed to notice her coworker's distress," What's on your mind, Eeyore?"

The purple haired girl sent a pointed glare at her for the ridiculous nickname and was about to brush her off when a wave of nerves rolled over her," Uh, I guess you can answer this for me better than anyone; How do you get a guy to ask you out?"

"Hmmm...You carry a sewing kit around and fix up his constant tears as an excuse to spend time with him?"

"That is utterly ridiculous."

The rose haired girl chuckled," Hey, I think I'm wearing him down."

"Cherche, this isn't helping!"

"Okay, okay," She tapped her chin thoughtfully," If you really like him, you should be the one to ask him out!"

Bryony shook her head wildly," What?! I could never do that! I'd be turned down right away-"

"You'd be turned away by the love-note guy who is obviously head over heels for you?" Cherche dead panned," I don't think that's likely."

The trombonist's jaw dropped," How do you know about Donnel?"

Cherche grinned," He talks about you a lot. Seriously, you should just ask him out. He won't turn you away."

She rubbed her arm," I guess, but won't he eventually get tired of me? Love doesn't usually last."

"Says who?"

"My mom. My dad. Pretty much everyone in my family has tried to have a relationship, but they never work."

Cherche rolled her eyes with an unimpressed expression," So you're going to let the fact that your family gave up keep you from being happy?"

Bryony grimaced," When you put it like that-"

"Just ask him out, Eeyore."

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"Hello, Panne."

The brunette glanced up from where she was working in the library, only to find herself face to face with the boy she talked to at the funeral, Libra. She rose her eyebrow," What now, holy man?"

Libra shifted the weight of the books in his arm so that he was holding them with both hands," I apologize for disturbing you, but there's something I need to ask. Why did you come to Miss Exalt's aid?"

Panne's gaze was slowly turning into a glare," Can you not believe I would help someone?"

He back-peddled," Apologies. That isn't what I meant. I know that you two were neighbors, but you didn't seem very close. Why would you help a person who very well may be against Taguel beliefs? Not to say that Miss Exalt was, of course, but I'm curious to hear your response."

"Your predictions are right; The night of the assassination attempt was the first I saw her outside of school. I hardly knew her face and name. All I knew is she was descended from the first Exalt, Marth."

Libra sat down at her table, interested in her story," Your debt was to a man who died almost a hundred years ago?"

Panne scoffed," It is the debt of all the Taguel. We are told the story as children. In his time, the Taguel were slaves to humans. Kept as labor, we were treated even worse than livestock. The slightest resistance would earn a swift execution, to serve as an example."

"I've never heard of such cruelty," As a man who believed in everyone's happiness and forgiveness, he was strongly against the thought of taking a group of people and working them to death. No wonder Panne held such a strong hatred towards those who weren't part of her tribe.

"Humans are quick to forget history," Panne growled,"...Or rewrite it. But the first Exalt had the strength and courage to end the horror. He stood up for the Taguel, though it earned him trouble from his fellow humans. We are all the same, he said. Equal beings. No difference separates human and taguel. It was a platitude then, as now. But in that platitude, my kind found salvation. Liberation and equality took time, but in those words we found dignity. And so we teach our young of the debt we owe him. Should any Exalt ever need our aid, we will give it regardless of the cost."

Libra now understood why watching Emmeryn's death must've been so hard for her. She viewed it as failing her friend and her dead tribe," I see."

Panne fiddled with the page in her book," Despite our history, I never truly hated mankind. The Exalt's have proved your worth...Until a group of Grimleal filth slaughtered my people and put my warren to ruin."

"Panne, I don't know what to say-"

"That's alright, I have nothing else to say either. It seems I've wasted both of our time."

"Not at all!" He disagrees," You've allowed me to better understand who you are, Panne. And convinced me you are someone I would dearly love to know still better. I thank you for sharing your story with me. I look forward to seeing you in band."

Panne watched his retreating form curiously, wondering why this man was so open and honest. From what she had seen, he was trying to befriend her. Did she want to befriend him as well? She grimaced and slammed her book shut, quickly filing it away before exiting the library to clear her mind.

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As the day went on, Robin felt bad for disagreeing with Chrom. Sure, she still didn't side with him on this manner, but she didn't want to let it get between them. So when she entered the band room and saw him talking with Frederick, she walked up and hugged him from behind," Hi. I'm sorry that we haven't spoken much today, but going to make up for that right now."

He turned around, revealing that it wasn't Chrom that she was hugging," Uh...thanks?"

Robin squeaked and pulled away as quickly as she could, an overwhelming sense of awkwardness filling her," I'm so sorry! I thought you were someone else! You look incredibly similar to my boyfriend," It was true; both boys had dark blue hair and were almost a head taller than she was. The only difference seemed to be in the facial features, in which the boy had more of a pointed look," Heh, some first impression I've made."

He smirked," I would say I get it all the time, but it wouldn't be true. My name is Cobalt, I've recently transferred here from Chon'sin. You're Robin Doe, right? The drill you created is amazing. It's not surprising at all that your band took the winning title at Districts."

She shook his hand bashfully," Wow, thanks! I didn't think I was that well known."

"Honestly, I only heard about you from my friend, Tanith. She's over there," He tilted his head towards a girl with light purple hair in pigtails chatting excitedly with Anna," She has loved the Shepherds ever since she was six years old, so she leapt at the chance to transfer here with Say'ri and I."

Robin didn't know that their band was so popular," Oh, are you all from Chon'sin?"

Cobalt nodded," Yeah, but there's only three of us. I play the trumpet-"

"So does Chrom-I mean, my boyfriend. He's also the drum major."

"Wait, you two are dating? I didn't know that."

She pulled on her sleeve awkwardly," Yeah, we haven't really announced it yet."

"Announced what?" The duo turned around to see Chrom," Our relationship? Does this mean you're not mad at me anymore?"

Robin cringed," I'm sorry about all that. I don't have any right to be mad at you for something that has very little to do with either of us."

"It's fine," He replied cheerfully," Anyways, who is...," His voice trailed off as his eyes widened, observing the boy who looked similar to him. Cobalt was doing the exact same thing, surprise to find that Robin wasn't kidding when she said her boyfriend looked like him. Without warning, Chrom wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him," Well. It's nice to meet you, but we need to talk to some of the other new members as well," He practically dragged his girlfriend away, murmuring something about an imposter flirting with his girlfriend. Robin rolled her eyes and motioned towards a new girl with straight black hair, silently suggesting that they talk to her.

The girl smiled as they approached her," Ah, so I finally get to meet the drum majors of the unstoppable Ylissian Shepherds. Chrom Exalt and Robin Doe, correct?"

Chrom shook her hand heartily," Yup! You're Say'ri Katani, Chon'sin's old drum major, right? It's an honor to meet someone as talented as you, and I'm sorry about your older brother."

"Wait, what happened to her older brother?" Robin questioned curiously.

"He disappeared a few weeks ago, leaving Chon'sin without a band teacher and a great man," Say'ri took a deep breath before continuing," He's not dead yet, though. There's still hope."

Robin could feel her boyfriend's grip on her tighten, most likely because there was no chance his older sister could still be alive. She quietly wrapped her arms around his waist in a half-hug of sorts," Well, we wish you the best of luck and welcome you into the Shepherds with open arms. What instrument do you play?"

"Bassoon. My friends Cobalt and Tanith play the trumpet and the alto saxophone, but Tanith is-"

"Robin!" The trio turned to Anna, who was smothering the purple haired girl," We have another member in colorguard! Isn't she precious? I just want to hug her!"

The girl, Tanith, looked incredibly star struck," I can't believe I'm actually here! It's an honor to meet everyone, I'm a huge fan!"

By this point, most of the students were in the room and setting up for practice. Lucina trudged up to her parents sleepily and leaned her head on Chrom's shoulder," You guys aren't fighting anymore, right?"

Robin cringed; she hadn't thought about how their disagreements would affect Lucina. After all, she was under a lot of pressure and them fighting wouldn't help anything," Right. I'm sorry if we stressed you out."

"It's fine," She reassured," I was prepared for things like this to happen-" Lucina froze, her eyes fixated on something on the other side of the room," No, it can't be."

Chrom tilted his head in confusion," What can't be? Is something wrong?"

Without answering, the blue haired girl forced her way to the other side of the room, only stopping when she was facing the back of a blonde haired girl," Emmy?"

May flipped around, her eyes wide with a mixture of shock and horror. Recognition quickly took over her features, and before she could stop herself, May burst into tears. She dove forward and wrapped her arms around Lucina's waist, giving off no intention of letting go anytime soon. Lucina didn't mind at all, because she tightened her grip on May, trying desperately to keep her own tears in.

Sensing that this girl might be one of the future children, Chrom decided to take charge and call of the students outside to practice on the field. On the way out, he gave Lucina a thumbs up.

While everyone else was confused, Lissa felt like she had a pretty good idea of what was going on. Instead of following everyone else outside, she hesitantly approached the two," Uh, Lucina? Did I hear you right? Is this Emmy?"

Lucina nodded in relief and pulled away from her cousin, turning the girl so that she was facing her mother. May, or Emmy, clenched her fists and kept her eyes on the ground," I-I'm sorry. You weren't supposed to f-find out-"

"Why not?"

"B-Because you're only sixteen!" Emmy cried," You don't even know who my dad is, and you suddenly have a daughter that you'll probably feel obligated to look after! D-Don't worry, I've been taking care of myself for almost two months now. You don't have to-" Lissa rolled her eyes and scooped her daughter up into a hug, thoroughly surprising the freshman," W-What?"

Lissa beamed," I'm so proud of you, Emmy. You're strong, just like your namesake. I couldn't ask for a better daughter."

"B-But-"

"Oh, and that whole _I've been taking care of myself so that you don't have to_ business is silly! If you haven't noticed, my house is huge and we have a ton of inheritance from my grandparents and whatnot. You could be roommates with Lucina or I! It'd be fun!"

Emmy wasn't ready to give in yet," But you don't know who my dad is. Won't my presence make you anxious or something?"

The new mother scoffed," Oh please. I'm old enough to know the right guy when I find him," She paused," It's Henry, isn't it?"

Her daughter's eyes widened to the size of saucers," What?! No! Of course not!"

"Mmhm, sure," Lissa giggled," I'm pretty sure you guys have this code of something, so I won't force the answer out of you...But I still hope it's him."

Lucina chuckled, wiping some of the stray tears off of her cousin's cheeks," Come on, we should head onto the field before everyone gets worried-"

"Not yet!" Lissa huffed," Emmy still needs to say that she'll move in with us. I won't settle for anything less than the best for my daughter."

The short haired girl bit her lip," Are you sure, Lissa-"

"You can call me mom, or mommy, or mama, or mother, or whatever."

That was when Emmy lost it again. She burst into sobs, leaping onto her mother just like she had done to her cousin," I've missed you so much, mommy! Please don't leave ever again! Owain and I need you!"

Lissa's shoulders relaxed as she smoothed her daughter's hair," Don't worry! You won't be loosing me anytime soon! I'm here to stay!" She suddenly adopted a more motherly persona and kissed the top of her daughter's head," I love you, Emmy."

"I love you too, mother!"

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**Okay, so it turns out that May is Emmylene, aka Lissa's daughter (I've been planning that for the longest time)! I'm going to call May Emmy from this point on because that is who she truly is. Bryony has a huge crush on Donnel but is scared to act upon it because no one in her life has succeeded with love, Lissa and Cherche have hinted on their crushes, and life is stressful for Lucina. Ooh, and I forgot about the new Chon'sin subplot. I won't give away spoilers for that, but it will be interesting! Fun fact; Tanith and Cobalt were both avatars of mine, but Cobalt was named Chrom and married to Lissa as a weird practical joke to keep me entertained (I'm weird). Sumia and Gaius have made no progress in their relationship yet, but there will be some in the time to come. Review time!**

**Kit-Cat Star:** **I know, I cringe thinking about how horrible of a situation I put him in. I love the relationship between Chrom and Gaius, so I had him stay behind and figure out what is really going on. Lucina was there too because of spoilers and whatnot. I'm glad that my explanation made sense, sometimes I'm not very good at getting my points across. Thank you, and I can't wait to hear from you again!**

**Amy47101: ****Okay, so I put up my OliviaxHenry fic up either on Tuesday or Wednesday or Monday or something. I don't have that good of a memory, but it's called _Encore_. Go check it out! Daddy Frederick is great for Cynthia, especially because she is just as clumsy as her mother! A lot of people ship Gaius and Maribelle, but like you've said, that is complicated. I've never done it before, but I've heard about it. I like Sumius, that is a good name for them. I totally understand waiting for everything to collapse on Gaius, it was expected. It was fun to write everything slowly falling in on him. Poor guy. Well, I personally ship (these are story pairing spoilers, so if you don't want to know what is happening in this fanfic with these characters, move on to the word DUCK) Cynthia and Morgan and Noire and Owain. I also ship Gerome with Severa because they're both tsuns (I don't know if I phrased that right. DUCK.) Haha, my favorite boy name is probably Christopher or Topher for short. Morgan is growing on me as well, probably because I want a son like my video game son. Your story seems really interesting, and I'd love to read it if there wasn't such a huge risk for spoilers. Once I give in a spoil myself, then I will definitely check it out once you start it up. Speaking of your stories, I read 6 and a half chapters of your Fire Emblem Awakening Fanfic, and I like it! Demyan is a cute addition, but that might just be because I'm a huge cat person. It was a long review, but I loved reading all of it! Thanks for commenting!  
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**The weasel is MINE XP: ****I think that was one of the first times I cringed with delight out of writing something. I think it's because we've all been through something that we desperately wanted to work out, only to have it fall on our faces as well. I felt bad that it had to be Gaius that everything fell apart onto, especially after he tried so hard to make things work out for everyone. The mysterious band person (I'm assuming you're talking about Emmy) is May! I've put in little hints throughout the story, such as Lissa's mother's name being May as well and the whole conversation they had. Thank you for commenting!****  
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**Okay guys, important stuff here: Do to me leaving for Disney World really early in the morning on Saturday and driving for a majority of the day, the next chapter will be posted on FRIDAY. Also, due to the fact that I may or may not be back the Saturday after, I will post the chapter after that on SUNDAY. Not tomorrow or the Sunday after that, but the Sunday in two weeks if that makes sense. Announcement over. Alright guys, as usual, thanks for reading and commenting! For the first time EVER, I'll see you next Friday! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	22. Chapter 22 Of Cursed Blood

**Hey guys! If you didn't read the afterward last week, then you are probably confused to why I'm posting on Friday instead of Saturday like usual. The reason for this is because I am going to leave for Disney World tomorrow! WOOHOO! Because of this, I'm also going to post next Tuesday instead of Saturday because I won't be back then. I'm not exactly sure if I'm coming back on Sunday or Monday, but if worse comes to worse, I'll definitely post that Saturday. With all of that info out of the way, lets get onto the story! Happy reading!  
**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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When Chrom finally learned who Emmy was, he decided that it was about time that they had a family meeting. After all, he had no idea how many kids were coming from the future. He was under the impression that Lucina and Noire were the only time travelers, but now that Emmy had shown up with mentions of another boy named Owain, he decided that it was time to talk business.

That was how they ended up in his living room; Chrom had settled onto the couch with his arm wrapped around Robin's waist. In return, his girlfriend leaned her head against his chest and kept up a conversation with Tharja, who was sitting on the other side of the couch with baby Noire, or Orie as they decided to nickname her, on her lap. Frederick sat on the other side of her with his arm around his wife's shoulders. Lissa had claimed the armchair in the corner of the room and had plopped a pillow in front of her so that she could play with Emmy's hair. Lucina seated herself on one of the stools with Noire on her right, chatting about her first day of school.

Once everyone seemed settled in, Chrom spoke up," So, exactly how many children are coming from the future?"

The three teenagers shared a look before mentally counting the amount in their heads," Uh, including the three of us, I think sixteen."

"How is that even possible? Didn't you say that we all died in the future?"

Emmy giggled," That's the exact reason everyone had so many children. They knew their fates, as sad as that sounds, and they wanted to make the most of their lives before it all fell apart. That's why Lucina isn't much younger than Noire."

Chrom narrowed his eyes," Wait a minute, that means that we were around twenty when we had her!"

"That also means that Lissa was eighteen when she had Owain," Robin snorted.

Her older brother's eyebrow twitched," Hold on, you had a baby when you were eighteen?! That's it. I'm killing whoever you date," Frederick nodded in agreement, only to get hit upside the head by Tharja.

"What?! That's so unfair!" Lissa groaned," Emmy just said that we were all desperate during that time!"

"That's no excuse!"

Robin nudged her boyfriend," You shouldn't reprimand her for something that her future self did. She has no control over that. Anyways, we get cute future children as a product! I mean, look at how adorable your niece is!"

He nudged her back," You mean our niece? After all, we're married in the future, Love."

"Please don't flirt in front of us!" Lissa complained," You'll make Lucina uncomfortable."

The blue haired girl shook her head wildly," No, not at all! I think it's romantic," She added dreamily.

"Fine then; it's making me uncomfortable."

The couple stuck their tongues out at Lissa, who returned a similar gesture. Frederick rolled his eyes fondly and whispered to Tharja," They're acting like they're a family already."

The dark haired woman smirked," We'd be denying it if we said Robin wasn't a part of our family from the first moment we met her."

He chuckled," You're right...Oh that reminds me," Frederick turned to the couple," I got a phone call from Plegia's principal today. He said that he heard of the things that their drum major has been doing and wanted to formally apologize on behalf of the school for them. He specifically said that Chrom and Robin need to be there."

"If it is supposed to make amends between our schools, why do I feel so uneasy about it?" Chrom murmured.

Robin shrugged, but she couldn't help but agree with him. After all that Plegia had done to attack Ylisse, why was he apologizing now? More specifically, why did he insist that Chrom and her had to be there? The only reason she could think up was that he wanted to apologize for the kidnapping attempt, but no one knew about that except the couple and Gangrel. Robin was pretty positive that he wouldn't turn himself in, so what had happened?

Frederick sensed their nerves," I will be accompanying you. There is no way I'd let you two go alone, especially after all that has happened between our two schools."

"...It wouldn't hurt to stop the fighting," The white haired girl started softly," Maybe this trip will secure an unspoken alliance."

Chrom gritted his teeth," I still don't trust it, but if you and Frederick are going, I'd feel safer if I went too."

The band teacher nodded," Alright then. Meet me in the band room after school, and we will head over."

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Plegia had always unnerved Robin. It was true that the school didn't hate her as much as they despised the Exalts, but the fact that her sweatshirt came from there made told her that she may have ties to the place. The same fuzzy feeling that always blurred in her brain spiked up again as she entered the building with Chrom and Frederick.

Thankfully, most of the students had gone home by that point. There was no one to pester the trio of Ylissians, but that didn't stop them from heading straight for the principal's office. Much to their shock, Aversa was standing outside of the doorway," Oh, we weren't expecting you to actually show up. Nonetheless, Plegia welcomes you."

Chrom clenched his jaw," Aversa? What are you doing here?"

"What can I say? I've been promoted from the band teacher's intern to vice principal!" She gloated.

Robin blinked," What? I thought you were a student."

She pouted mockingly," Well I can't say I'm surprised. Getting amnesia must have destroyed a lot of your brain cells-"

Robin narrowed her eyes, but decided that punching the smug freak in the face wouldn't help with negotiations. Chrom cleared his throat, hoping to bring the conversation back to the topic at hand," You must know the principal pretty well then, right? This...Validar Grimm?"

"I do."

"I've heard that he is a very religious man as well," Frederick added," Is that true?"

Aversa smiled sweetly, sending shivers down Robin's spine. Part of her was screaming to abort right then and there, but she had no logic to back it up. Why did being in the same room as this woman make her so tense? Did they...know each other? The woman answered proudly," Why yes, of course he is. We are both believers. Mr. Grimm often says it was his faith that got him through, after Miss Exalt's passing," While that would've been a warm thought in any other circumstance, it made Chrom grit his teeth. Something was off; he could feel it," It was a difficult time...But he kept order where there might have been chaos. We had meant to arrange an official visit to Ylisstol, but-" Aversa was interrupted when a tan man with greasy black hair exited the office," Ah, here he is now."

Robin's jaw dropped, and she had to stop her body from breaking out into nervous shivers. It was the man from Emmeryn's assassination attempt; the man from her nightmares. Validar smirked, immediately giving away that he knew something that they didn't," It is an honor to finally meet you three. I am Validar Grimm, the principal of Plegia Academy. No need to introduce yourselves, I already know who you are."

Chrom nodded," The honor is ours...Is it possible we've met before some...," He tilted his head, trying to make out where he might've seen that face. It vaguely resembled the one in the window from the night that the Grimleal came to his house...His eyes widened in realization," Gods! It can't be."

The man crossed his arms," Oh ho, I'm quite certain I would remember any encounter with one of the all-too-famous Exalts."

"Psst! Robin!"

Robin glanced to the side without moving her head, already aware of what her boyfriend would say," I know! He looks just like the assassin that came after Emmeryn...," She whispered nervously. There was no way she could mention that he was from her nightmares. That would mean telling Chrom about her constant dreams of him dying, and that alone terrified her.

Validar watched the girl's face twist into an anxious one," And you must be Robin...Doe, was it? What a charming last name."

Robin managed to keep her composture as she responded to Mr. Grimm, but the fact that he was commenting on her fake last name could on mean one thing; he might known her real name," You know who I am?"

"The whole city knows of Ylisse's drum majors! I don't doubt the rumors of your intelligence for a second. I can see the sparkle of wisdom in your eyes."

Chrom hissed," But the police killed him, Robin!"

"I know but... The resemblance...it's uncanny..."

"How could he possibly-"

Validar coughed to gain their attention," My, our meeting hasn't even begun and there is already so much whispering."

Chrom stiffened," ...My apologies, Mr. Grimm. We meant no disrespect."

Robin sent a defiant look towards the principal and whispered," Chrom? What should we do?"

He was somewhat conflicted. While the murdered did look a lot like this principal, he doubted that they could be the same person. After all, would a murderer really become a high school principal? He doubted it," Nothing for now. But stay close, and be ready for anything..."

Validar heard the last thing the boy said and smirked victoriously," Then let us get to it. Plegia formally apologizes for it's students' behavior for the past month. If we could take it back, we would. The death of your older sister has been a hard blow for everyone, me included. We hope that this effort to mend the relationship between two schools will lead to a reliable partnership."

Frederick nodded warily," That is what we wish for as well."

"Good! I look forward to building a strong bond between our two schools," Validar concluded.

Chrom flashed an uneasy smiled before taking Robin's hand and slowly backing towards the door," As do I. Then, if there's nothing else? We have to hurry back to Ylisstol."

Aversa frowned," Oh, so soon? But I have one more introduction to make."

"...Yes?" Frederick crossed his arms impatiently," And who would that be?"

Validar opened the office door, revealing a hooded woman dressed almost completely in black, baggy clothing," An assistant of mine, my most reliable companion in all Plegia."

No one spoke, waiting for the mysterious person to speak up. Deciding that starting up a conversations would help them leave sooner, Robin spoke up," ...So you help Validar with his job? We were just discussing something like that earlier...," When the person didn't respond, she shuffled uncomfortably,"...I'm sorry, have I said something to offend you?"

"...The heart still sleeps, but the blood flows through it. And the blood is strong..."

The voice sent chills throughout Robin's body, making her feel more uneasy than she could have ever imagined. It sounded familiar. It wasn't something from a dream, which only left one more option; had she heard the voice from her past? Robin tightened her grip on Chrom's hand and gulped," Um, were you talking to me?"

Frederick noticed the affect that this hooded figure was having on Robin and decided to put a stop to it," Excuse me, but I think that you should lower your hood. It is a courtesy expected of someone while introducing themselves."

The mysterious figure smirked,"...very well...," Robin watched in horror as the figure removed their hood, only to reveal someone who looked scarily similar to her. While the being looked about twenty or so years older than she was and had cut her white hair into a choppy, shorter version of itself, the two were nearly identical," Is that better?"

Without warning, Robin's head started pounding. She had a sister?! How was that even possible? Didn't she want to look for her if she went missing? What did this all mean? She cringed," What is going on?!"

Chrom's eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets," What the hell?!"

"What kind of a joke is this?!" The teacher boomed.

"She looks just like...me," She murmured, rubbing the back of her head to try and sooth the pain," Who are you?"

The woman smiled condescendingly, obviously making it a point that she looked down on the younger girl," My name is Robin. Oh and that was YOUR name as well, wasn't it? What a strange coincidence..."

Validar chuckled," Why that IS rather curious, now that you mention it...What are the odds?" Unable to take it anymore, Robin took off out of the nearest exit to get as far away as possible. Mr. Grimm leered after her, pleased with the outcome," In any case, I believe we are finished here. We will let you be on your w-"

Chrom grabbed the man's collar before he could leave, his temper flaring up by the second. Who the hell did these people think they were?! Did they not know about Robin's amnesia?! Did they not care about the fact that she was an orphan trying to piece her life together out of nothing?! He was going to be damned if he let them get away with hurting his girlfriend," Hold just one moment!"

Aversa cocked her head innocently," Mr. Exalt?"

"What is the meaning of this? Why do your friend and Robin-"

She clucked her tongue," I'm afraid we've no time for such trivial matters now. We have preparations to attend to, and you have a long, hard journey ahead to prepare for State...," She pried his hands off of Validar, letting the Principal leave his office. Before Chrom could take off after him, she blocked the doorway," Oh, and do be careful on your way back to Ylisse. This time of year the highroads of Plegia can be quite treacherous..."

"Get the fuck out of my way," He didn't wait for her to react, instead opting to push her out of his path and try to find Robin.

Aversa pursed her lips," My, Mr. Warry, you need to get a hold of your student."

Frederick narrowed his eyes menacingly," I'm sorry, but I believe I misheard you. After all, you're trying to defend the man who was deliberately taunting Miss Doe. I believe that Mr. Exalt acted perfectly in line with what is right, other than the fact that he let Mr. Grimm escape without leaving an impression."

"Was that a threat towards Mr. Grimm-"

"This is humorous," The remaining two turned to the mysterious person, who was smugly sitting in the principal's chair," You still have some spirit in you. That's nice."

Frederick glared at her," I don't know who you are or what your motives are, but if you intend on laying so much as a finger on any of my students, I will personally send you back into whatever hell-hole you climbed out of."

The woman giggled," Ooh, I'm shaking out of fear!"

He growled, but decided that it was a lost battle...for now. Right now, he needed to find his kids and get them out of there as soon as possible.

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Robin sat with her back against a tree in front of the school, hugging her knees to her chest and trying to figure out what had just happened. Why was it so hard? She was supposed to be a genius, but this was stumping her,"...It's no use. I don't understand it," She squeezed her eyes shut and rested her chin on her knee," Who was that woman? How could she bear my face?"

"Robin...Listen to me, Robin..."

The white haired girl's head shot up and desperately scanned the area," Huh? Who's there?! Th-there's no one. I'm alone..."

The voice spoke up again, this time right behind her head," Listen to me, Robin!"

She flipped around, only to find Validar crouching behind her. She rocketed to her feet and backed away as far as she could before her head started pounding again. Robin held her head, trying to sooth the shots of pain shooting through her brain," Nngh...Leave me alone! Who are you?! What's happening?!"

"Why do you close your heart to him, Robin?" He tutted, almost as if he was scolding a child. He slowly approached her, watching with a sick sense of glee as she fell onto her knees.

Robin glared up at him, grinding her teeth," You know who I am, don't you?"

Validar observed her carefully, trying to figure out if she was putting up a charade or not," Have you truly forgotten?"

"You..act as if you...know me... Augh! My head!" She decided that figuring out how this man knew her wasn't as important as making sure didn't hurt her," Get away from me!"

"Heh heh. Such arrogance!" He took her chin in his hands and forced her to look up at him," You dare take such a tone with your own father?!"

Father? But Emmeryn said that her parents died in a car accident! He was lying! He had to be...right? As much as she didn't want it to be true, part of her knew it was,"...My what?"

"You are my child, but you have special blood. You were born to serve a glorious purpose! Search deep in your heart. You already know it is your destiny..."

Robin yanked her chin away from him and staggered backwards," No...Get...out..."

Validar growled," Why do you resist us, Robin? Your rightful place is at my side, not wasting your time with these doomed heathens! Give yourself to Grima! Let me give your strength to the fell dragon so that our family can reclaim its hold on this country-"

"Robin!"

She didn't have to look up to know who the voice belonged to," Chrom!"

The man scoffed, knowing that he'd be in some form or another of trouble if he didn't leave,"...Pah! Not this one again...," Validar shrugged," No matter. In time you will see the truth. And that is all it will be; a matter of time...," With that, he disappeared back to where he came from, leaving just in time for Chrom to arrive.

The blue haired boy sped to her and fell down onto his knees. He scooped her face in his hands and turned it in several different angles, frantically checking for any trace of a bruise," Robin! Are you all right? I heard shouting."

Shaking her head in a lot of different directions wasn't helping her condition much, but the fact that Chrom was there calmed her immensely," Nngh... Ahh... Ahh... I-I think so...Yes, Chrom, thank you," She grabbed his hands to stop him," I'm...I'm fine."

Chrom scoffed," Fine is a poor choice of words! What's happened?! You look sick!"

"...Validar, he...He spoke to me...," Robin gulped, praying that what she was about to say wouldn't scare him too much," He said I was his...his daughter..."

"What?! Is...is this true?"

Robin frowned and turned her head to the side, ashamed of her roots," I don't know...But I also don't know it's a lie. As much as I hate myself for saying it, I felt a...a strange connection between us. I think he was telling the truth."

The blue haired boy grimaced," Oh, gods...," Why did fate have to be cruel? Out of all of the people that could've been Robin's parents, she was stuck with a psychotic man who found enjoyment in torturing her. Not to mention the creepy white haired woman...speaking of which," That doppelganger...Could she be his daughter, as well? Are you sisters?"

"I...I'm sorry, Chrom. I can't remember...But if I'm being honest...it would explain much...," She buried her face in her hands," I'm not even sure I want to know the truth of my past anymore..."

Her boyfriend wrapped her into the warmest hug he could produce, knowing that this was exactly what she needed," You are yourself, before you are any man's daughter. Remember that."

Did that mean he wasn't going to treat her any differently knowing that her father was a crazy Plegian? Robin glanced up at him and smiled, wondering how on earth she ended up so lucky,"...Thank you, Chrom."

He returned the gesture and pulled away, looking at the door. Frederick would probably show up any time now," Can you walk?"

"Yes...yes I think so," Chrom nodded and got to his feet, pulling her up with him. She brushed herself off and smoothed her hair before diving headfirst into her new investigation," Why did Emmeryn lie to me?"

The blue haired boy knew his sister well, so he had no doubt that whatever reasoning she had was a good one," I'm sure that she had the best interests in mind for you-"

"Why would lying be the best option?" Robin ran her hand through her messy hair," I don't understand how shying me away from the truth would protect me more than warning me never to look for him."

"I know, but Emmeryn would never do anything that would hurt you."

The white haired girl sighed," I know, but...Chrom, put yourself in my shoes; What if you had never discovered that your father was a criminal-"

"I don't want to talk about him-"

"Do you think I want to talk about Validar? As much as I don't want it for either of us, I'm fairly certain that both of our mothers were killed by our dads," Robin hugged herself and looked to the side," But if you are truly uncomfortable talking about it, I won't blame you."

Chrom shook his head," No, you're right...as always. This is a problem that is not going to go away, and in order to face it, we need to be prepared."

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Gregor wandered into the band room, holding a box of candy bars and a rose in his hands. After the whole fiasco that took place on Sunday night, he felt bad. After all, things might have gone better if he had watched where he was going. With that philosophy, he decided that he'd make it up to every single person whose night he had ruined. He had started off with the easiest person to sway, Stahl, and gave him a pie. Needless to say that tided him over. Gregor was already one step ahead with Kellam because he paid for his movie ticket, and he gave Cordelia a new cardigan to make up for the one he ruined. Lissa was easy as well, because all she needed to forgive him was a lamb plush. He didn't know much about Lucina, so he gave her a chocolate bar from his box as an apology. That only left the harder people to make it up to; Chrom, Maribelle, Sumia, and Gaius. Out of the four, the blonde sophomore seemed the easiest to approach," Oy, Maribelle? Hello? Where are you?"

Maribelle, on the other hand, was having a bad day. She was working extremely hard so that she could become a lawyer, but today's class did not go well in any way, shape, or form. It all went downhill as soon as she took the opposite stance as their teacher did, arguing with him to the point where he blatantly told her that she should just forget about her dream and do something her mind was more capable of, like being a housewife. The thought alone made her cringe, but the fact that he said it in front of the entire class made her want to curl up in a ball. That was why she was hiding in the band room instead of eating lunch in the cafeteria with her friends. She drearily glanced up at the foreign boy and sighed," Oh, hello Gregor..."

The auburn haired boy frowned and slid onto the ground next to her," What is matter with Maribelle? Is like heavy weight being placed on shoulders."

She sent him a weary, yet hard stare," And tell me, how do I normally look?"

"Beautiful, like flower in sunshine. So beautiful that gods weep from jealousy and despair!"

Maribelle rubbed her arms in disappointment," Oh..."

He furrowed his brow, confused to why his compliment didn't make her get defensive like they usually did," What's wrong? You can tell Gregor, if you wish."

"...You don't think I'm stupid, right?"

Gregor was baffled at the very idea," Of course not! Maribelle is incredibly intelligent and independent. Why do you even ask?"

She shrugged half heartedly," I'm upset because of my law class, all right. Mr. Ruger and I have extremely different morals, and he announced to me in front of the entire class that I have no chance in making it in the real world as a lawyer. I know that these insecurities aren't helping my case and that I need to keep a good impression of myself up so that I gain the respect of my individuals, but...even I can't be perfect all the time!"

"This Ruger man acted stupidly, but I disagree with Maribelle."

"What? Why?"

"It is simple; Maribelle is most definitely perfect."

The blonde broke for a millisecond and let her heart melt at the comment before stiffening back up. Although the boy had proved himself to be incredibly sweet and understanding underneath his rough exterior, she was not going to let him get through to her," This simply will not do!"

Gregor blinked," No?"

"Even if I wanted to be flattered by you, which, to be honest, is the case-"

"On ho!"

Maribelle sent him a death glare that warned him not to utter another word until she was done," I cannot allow myself to rely on someone who continuously breaks our band's rules. It must not and will not happen! I am a person that fights for the good of the people, and someone who disregards that is not-"

"Er, yes. About that," He held out the box of chocolate bars to her," Gregor is sorry he is stealing chocolates from stock. He figured that if he bought the band new chocolates, it would help Maribelle and him start over. We can forget all the wrongdoings that Gregor has done!"

She grimaced," Please don't tell me you've done things other than steal our fundraiser chocolates."

"No, Gregor promises that is all he has done...well, that and that he also took a lock of Chrom's hair to sell to his silly fan club," Maribelle sighed in exasperation," Do not sigh! Gregor is actually much better than before, yes? Is because Maribelle is scolding Gregor so much that he tries harder to follow rules. Is making Gregor better student and allows him to be helping comrades, no? He is just not perfect yet like Maribelle. These things, they take time."

Maribelle was conflicted to say the least; this boy was a scoundrel, but he was making such an effort to make it up to her. Yes, she would have to be blind not to notice that small gifts that he was awarding his other friends (not that she was watching him. No, that would be ridiculous!), but he seemed to be a lot more genuine in his exchange with her. Why was that? After all, she had been nothing but rude to him. She bit her lip," So what you're saying is that it's thanks to my efforts that you're being friendly with other people?"

"You've been taking notice of Gregor?"

"No, I was just-I mean-," She groaned as a blush creeped upon her cheeks," Just answer me."

Gregor nodded cheerfully," Yes, you are understanding Gregor!"

The piccolist allowed the corners of her lips to tilt up into a smile," Well, I suppose that makes sense. All right, then. I think it would be a good thing if we had a new start and forgot all of the quarrels we had," She cleared her throat and fluffed her hair before turning back to him and holding out her hand," Hello, my name is Maribelle Beaulieu, and it is a pleasure to meet you."

Gregor chuckled and shook it," Muchly in the agreeing! Hello, pretty lady! Gregor is his name, and it is pleasurable to meet you!"

It was only then that she realized she wasn't in a bad mood anymore. In fact, Gregor had made her feel much better than she had before," Thank you for checking on me. It was very sweet of you...even if you are uncultured."

Instead of taking the slight insult, he held out his rose to her," Gregor almost forgot! He found a flower that was almost as beautiful as you! He would like Maribelle to have it as a gift!"

Her face heated up to the point where the color almost matched that of the rose," Really? How surprisingly kind of you! I will accept your gift, thank you."

He grinned," Great! Since you accepted beautiful rose, Gregor is going to go eat lunch with friends now. Would Maribelle like to come?"

"I'm fine, thank you."

Gregor took her hand in his and kissed the back of it before giving her a farewell nod and exiting, leaving the incredibly flustered blonde behind. She didn't even have time to process what happened before she got tackled into a hug by Lissa," Oh my gods, Gregor likes you!"

Maribelle gently placed the flower to the side so that it wouldn't get hurt by her rambunctious friend," Of course he does. Why else would he want my approval so badly?"

"No, I mean he likes-you likes-you!"

Just when it seemed that the color of her face would fade, it turned bright scarlet again," W-What? No, he does not! H-He is just being friendly, that's it."

Lissa giggled," Ooh, do you like him back?" When she didn't answer, the younger girl erupted into excited squealed," Oh my gosh, you like him back! That's why you're always looking at him! I didn't know you were into that kind of man, Mari-"

"Shut up!" She squeaked embarrassedly," If anyone finds out, I won't ever be able to live it down."

"But if no one finds out, then you guys will never date!"

Maribelle frowned," That's how it should be. He's an exchange student and a senior. I don't want to be the thing that holds him back from his home."

Lissa snorted," I can't believe that my best friend is giving up that easy. Seriously, if you like him, you shouldn't let distances or statices or anything get in the way of it! This is a once in a lifetime chance, and you'll seriously regret it if you let him slip out of your fingers."

The piccoloist scoffed," Oh, really? If that's true, then why haven't you asked out Henry? He's a junior, after all. Can't wait to long for him to confess to you."

"Oh yeah?" The Exalt smirked," How about this; If I ask out Henry this week, then you have to tell Gregor how you feel."

"W-What? That's utterly ridiculous-"

"Then it's a deal!" Lissa declared," By Friday, Henry and I will be doing all the weird couple-y stuff and you will have confessed to Gregor! No back-sies out-sies!"

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**I honestly didn't plan on putting the Gregor/Maribelle part in this chapter, but I'm really glad I did, because that means that Lissa is going to ask out a certain dark mage in the next chapter! Their relationship is super cute because he is always complimenting her and she doesn't know how to take it (Brady as their son also makes a ton of sense in this case). We got a family meeting in the first part, and if you took note of the amount of children I said, you'd know that there are going to be some OC kids (I also apologize that everyone had their kids super young; Poor Lissa (even though it's her future self)). I love Chrom and Frederick's reaction to that, though. Got to introduce Validar, reintroduce Aversa, and then there's the mysterious woman that looks like Robin. Who do you think she is? Why did Emmeryn lie? Did Emm know something that the others didn't? Stay tuned! Review time!**

**Amy47101: **** Haha, I hope you liked it! Freddy is the best daddy ever along with Gregor, Avatar, Chrom, and probably Stahl. I feel that Henry would be up there too, though. I don't remember my thought process other than Nowi and Ricken look cute together and they destroyed the midmire level. I like Maribelle and Gaius's supports, they're extremely well written and unique. I always feel bad because I never use Gregor as much as I want to, so he rarely ends up married. I agree that those supports are funny and very father/son, but I personally dislike Kjelle...sorry Kjelle lovers. She never stood out to me as either a character or a unit. GregorxCynthia is my second choice for them, so go for it! I personally also really like NoirexOwain (Other than Lucina, I think she is the only one that supports his odd language). I love Morgan so much it is incredible. Yes, Demyan is a cutie despite being somewhat of a tough guy. I just got to the part with Donnel and his fairy sister (I'm totally blanking on the name, I'm so so sorry), and I think that your characters are cool and unique! Keep up the good work! Thanks for reviewing! **

**The weasel is MINE XP: ****Woohoo, bassoon! I almost made Say'ri another Drum major, but after a lot of thinking, I decided that I like it being Chrom and Robin by themselves. There's much more ahead, so stay tuned! Thanks for commenting! **

**Alrighty guys, I guess I'll see you next Monday/Tuesday. In all honesty, it'll probably be Tuesday because I'm most likely getting home late on Monday. Not much to say in the afterward other than the next chapter will focus mainly on Lissa and her family. Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	23. Chapter 23 The Scion of Legend

**Hey guys...I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY! I know I was supposed to post on Tuesday, but as soon as I came back from Disney (which was very tiring in itself) I spent the night at my friend's house. Then my mom put dog flea medicine on my cat and almost killed him so we had to take him to the vet (he's okay now) and then I babysat yesterday. Don't worry, chapters will be every Saturday after this point (unless something serious happens that prevents me from doing so). Anyways, since it has been about two weeks, I'll catch you guys up! Lissa and Maribelle made a deal that they had to ask the boy they liked out. Two new characters appear in this chapter and one character that you probably never expected to see again. Happy reading!  
**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Lissa had a master plan all figured out, and all of it was comprised of things she had asked her friends (except Maribelle. She didn't want her friend to use that as an excuse). Robin told her to be herself, but she also pointed out that all of the substantial parts of her and Chrom's relationship had happened at odd points. Lucina told her to take some interest in what Henry liked to do in order to understand him better and build a stronger bond. Tharja said to listen to her gut instinct because it was almost always right. Lissa even asked Emmy for advice, but the blonde girl only shrugged and said that she didn't want to affect her possible relationships for whoever she was going after.

With all that in mind, Lissa texted Henry and asked him to meet up with her. They agreed to meet up at the park and go from there. After changing her outfit a few dozen times, Lissa finally spun around with a cute yellow sundress and a pale cardigan," Ta-da! What do you guys think?"

The girls of the family, Robin, Lucina, Emmy, and Noire, observed her carefully. The blue haired girl tapped her chin," I don't know...it seems pretty bland."

"You just want her to wear that patterned dress," Noire teased softly.

"Of course I do! The stripes behind the rainbow polka-dots makes her eyes really pop!"

Emmy rolled her eyes at her cousin's lack of fashion sense and smiled," Well I think that mother looks very pretty."

"Yeah, it suits you nicely," Robin agreed," So have you decided on how you're going to make the first move?"

While there were a few ways of approaching the situation that could work, none of them were sticking out to her. A well thought out plan didn't seem like it was going to work out in this situation. After all, Lissa had seen just how badly a plan could fail for someone when she went to the movies the week prior," Nah, I think I'm just going to wing it."

Noire furrowed her eyebrows," Are you s-sure that's a good idea?"

"I don't want to deal with a back up plan or disappointment if my first plan fails," Lissa pointed out," Anything can happen, especially if the person we're dealing with is Henry."

Robin nodded," She has a point; I've never pre-planned anything with Chrom. It just happened naturally," She suddenly became flustered," But I've also only dated him for almost three weeks, so I'm not sure if I'm the best person to be giving you advice."

"Out of all of us, you're the only one who has dated," Emmy responded," None of us have any idea what to do when it comes to this sort of thing."

Lissa glanced at her phone," Ooh, it's time to go! Thank you guys for helping me! I don't know if I would've made it out of my closet without you!"

Lucina shooed her aunt out the door," Go on, you don't want to be late!"

"Good luck, Mother!"

The blonde waved goodbye to the others and hopped outside, a mixture of excitement and nerves clouding her stomach. She was incredibly nervous that something might go wrong. After all, romance was something she was used to talking about, not experiencing.

Before she could even make it halfway to her destination, Emmy ran up behind her waving a bag in the air," Mother! You forgot your purse!"

Lissa glanced down at her side, surprised that she had left behind something so important," Oh, I must've been in a huge hurry if I forgot it. Thanks for bringing it back to me!"

"It's no problem at all-," Suddenly, her usual self faded as her eyes flickered to an alley nearby them. She carefully took a step in front of her mom, pulling an odd looking item out of her pocket," You need to leave as soon as possible, mom. Things are about to get dangerous."

The older blonde furrowed her eyebrows and glanced into the alley," What are you talking about-"

She didn't get the chance to finish, because a bullet narrowly missed her head and tore through one of her ponytails. Emmy acted fast by pushing her mother out of the way and throwing the object at the enemy. A flash of blinding white light illuminated the area, accompanied by an excruciatingly loud pop. With that distraction, Emmy grabbed Lissa's elbow and helped her onto her feet, pushing her into he direction of the park," Go get dad! He'll get you to safety!"

Lissa looked appalled at the very idea," And leave you behind?!"

Something took over her daughter at that moment; instead of the usually polite and sometimes nervous girl she was used to, an almost psychotic look crept it's way into Emmy's eyes. A twisted smile was blaring on her face, eerily reminding Lissa of how Henry acted. Yet this was different; Emmy looked furious," Mother, both you and I know that I'm the only one capable of killing these people if it comes to that."

"Why would you even think about-"

Her face softened slightly, showing Lissa that her daughter was nowhere near as innocent as they both wanted her to be," Mother, I wouldn't forgive myself if something were to happen to you. Please go."

Lissa had never hated herself more than she did at that moment. What kind of a mother was she anyways if she couldn't protect her child? The only thing she could hope to do was get Henry and call the police, but even that was almost a long shot. Seeing that she wasn't going to make up her mind anytime soon, Emmy pushed her mother towards her destination," GO!"

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Henry knew something was up when Lissa didn't show up on time. While he had not had many friends before her, he knew that she would never show up late without calling him first. It was one of the many qualities he adored about her. Just when he was about to text her to see if everything was alright, the blonde sped up to him and pounced on him, dragging him off the bench," We need to call the police right now!"

His eyes strayed onto her one ponytail, which was a lot shorter and choppier than the other one," That's a bold choice for a haircut, nya ha!"

Lissa shook her head wildly," No, my d-I mean, friend, is under attack! She made me leave her alone so that I could get help! We need to go back for her!"

"She probably sent you here beCAWS-"

She grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him to face her," God dammit, Henry, this is no laughing matter! _Our daughter_ is on her own fighting someone who has a gun, and I left her alone!"

For the first time in her entire life, Lissa watched as Henry's seemingly permanent grin fell and his tiny, squinting eyes widened to the size of frisbees," Our...Our daughter? But I didn't...we didn't..."

The blonde bit her lip, only remembering then that her family was the only one aware of the time traveling children," It's complicated..."

Henry still seemed to be in a daze of sorts," Our daughter...I have a daughter...we have a daughter...," Without any warning, something seemed to snap inside of him. His grin grew until it looked completely manic and almost terrifying," Someone is trying to kill my daughter, so I will kill them."

Lissa's eyes popped open," Woah, woah, woah, you wouldn't go that far as to murder-"

"You don't know me as well as you thought, then," His smile widened to the point where he looked insane," Sometimes death is the best option."

The moment he stated that, an uncontrollable wave of chills ran up Lissa's spine. He wasn't implying what she thought he was...right? It couldn't be true. She gently reached for his hand, partially terrified of what might happen to her if she wasn't careful," Henry..."

His eye twitched," S-Sometimes death is the best option."

"Henry, w-what are you saying?" She tugged on his arm a little bit," We have to call the police so that Emmy will be alright-"

He laughed," The police couldn't save Accalia, and they won't be able to save our child. I can save her. Oh yes, there will be blood-"

Lissa shuddered," Henry, you need to snap out of this! We need to be in the right mind frame if we're going to save Emmy!"

"-everywhere! I'll make sure no one ever thinks of laying a hand on someone close to me ever again-" Before he could finish, Lissa firmly grabbed him by the collar and yanked him down to her level, desperately pressing her lips tightly against his. He made a surprised squeak, but the tension in his body seemed to evaporate into thin air. As soon as they pulled apart, he muttered," Sorry. I lose control sometimes."

She wanted to hug him and tell him that it was okay to express his feelings, but now was not the time," We need to save Emmy. Please help me...I need you."

A warm feeling embraced her when his normal, happy-go-lucky smile reappeared on his face," You might as well call me Dracula, because you can COUNT on me, nya ha!" He grabbed her hand a squeezed it reassuringly," Let's go!"

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Emmy was vastly unprepared and outnumbered. She hadn't accounted for the fact that there would be Grimleal in the past before Grima's resurrection, especially in broad daily. She was running out of her stun devices, and without Laurent or Lucina to lead her into battle, her options were limited. The only thought that kept her going was that by doing this, she was keeping her parents safe.

Without warning, someone grabbed a fistful of her short hair and yanked her out of her hiding spot. Instead of giving him time to announce that he had found her, Emmy elbowed his stomach and kicked his crotch before pushing herself away from him. Unfortunately for her, the enemy pulled his gun out and aimed at her," Stupid brat! Prepare to die!"

Everything that happened next flew by in a blur; Emmy braced herself for the impact, but instead was shoved onto the cement. She could hear the sound of a bullet tearing through flesh, and a few droplets of blood splattered onto her cheek. The sound of a body hitting the ground forced her back to her senses as she pushed herself up to observe the person who had taken the hit for her. Spotting the gun on hIs belt, she pulled it out and shot the gangster in the head, cursing herself for having to take such desperate measures.

As soon as he was obviously dead, Emmy turned her attention back to the boy who saved her. Thankfully, he was still alive. For some reason, he seemed incredibly calm about the entire situation, almost as if he had already accepted his fate. The pain was still very evident in his face and body language, though, no matter how hard he seemed to be trying to hide it," Where did you get hit?"

The red haired boy gave her a halfhearted glance," You look like someone I took part in killing."

The statement alone was enough to surprise her," O-Oh? That's...Uh...," She shook her head," Nevermind that, right now we have to wrap your wound. Where did you get shot?"

"The stomach," He wheezed," You don't have to stay back for me. I'm nothing but food for the maggots now."

Emmy wrinkled her nose at the very idea and pulled her first aid kit out of her bag," Yeah right. You saved my life, so it's only natural that I attempt to return the favor."

He snorted as she lifted up his shirt and began to try and stop the bleeding," Ha! If I'm correct, we are even now."

"Why is that? I've never met you before."

The redhead's eyes trailed to the side while his face became grim," You happen to bear a similar appearance to Miss Emmeryn Exalt-"

Seeing that this man was slowly dying, she found no point in hiding the truth from him," My aunt."

He rose his eyebrow," Aunt? Does this mean that the rumors of time travelers floating around the Grimleal ranks is true? How interesting-" He winced," Either way, my debt is repaid."

Emmy sighed as she began to wrap his wound," That must mean that you were part of the group that murdered her, then. All for some silly artifact-"

"Both you and I know the true meaning of that device," He gritted through his teeth," Don't pretend that it holds no meaning."

"I don't understand," She murmured," No one told me why it was important; they just said that it was our top priority to get it to town hall-" The blonde scowled," Why am I telling you all of this? The only things I know about you are that you are Grimleal, you helped kill my aunt, and for some reason, you decided to save my life. I don't know what to think about you-"

"Gangrel."

"Excuse me?"

"My name is Gangrel."

Emmy pressed her lips together," Oh...alright. I guess it's nice to meet you, though I feel our introductions would have held happier memories if we had made them in normal circumstances."

He snickered," I would never talk to an Exalt if I had the choice. You're lucky that I pitied you."

"I feel like I'm the one that should be saying that," She replied as she finished wrapping his stomach," After all, I could've followed your orders and left you to the maggots."

"Anyone in your wretched family would've."

Emmy glared at him," I don't think you know my family as well as you think," She checked the surrounding area, making sure the coast was clear before heaving the immobile boy onto her back," Now come on, let's get you to a hospital so that you can get proper treatment," Before she could even take a step, he pushed himself off of her," Gangrel? What are you doing?"

"You took my gun, and I've seen you kill before," He kept his eyes focused on the sky above him," Just put me out of my misery now."

The blonde shook her head," Don't be ridiculous! I know that we hardly know each other, but you're going to have to trust me-"

Gangrel interrupted her by laughing," You're asking me to trust and allow a girl that looks exactly like the woman I helped kill? I don't deserve to even look at you! You should despise me for taking away the chance to meet the woman that everyone in your family seems to worship! So what are you waiting for?! Do it! I give you my head on a silver platter!"

Emmy stared at him with such distaste as she tossed her gun onto the ground," You're pathetic."

"...Wh-what?"

"Yes, you took away the chance for my future self to meet her aunt, but in my timeline, you had no part in the murder of Emmeryn. It's pathetic that even after you have at least tried to atone for your sins, you're being a coward," She crossed her arms," You're not even worth killing. Not like this. Your death would hold no meaning at all."

Gangrel was beginning to see a lot less of Emmeryn in the little girl, instead finding that she held a lot of the same morals as the boy he hated most, Chrom," You smug little-"

Emmy cut him off," Truthfully, most of us will meet our ends when Grima is resurrected. If you want to die, die for a cause. It's either we end Grima, or Grima ends us. If you would throw your life away, throw it at Grima! Die with a weapon in hand, not begging like some worthless rat with its foot in a trap! You are a human being, start acting like one," She picked her gun back up and slid it into her bag before moving to pick him back up on her back," Now suck up your self-pity, and die for a cause!"

He groaned, but he didn't seem to want to pull another stunt like the one he had earlier," Graaagh! Gods, I already despise you! Every word and every action of yours makes me want to paint the walls with my lunch!"

"I don't have to help you, keep that in mind-"

"I WASN'T FINISHED! Gods, anything to make you stop talking...," He shifted," Look, I've never sworn an oath in my life, much less thought to keep one...But what little life I have remaining is yours. Not your insufferable uncle, not your goody two shoes mother, and not your know it all aunt. The only person I will listen to is you. Gangsters, villains, gods...throw me at what you will, but don't expect me to follow you around like a lost puppy. I am not a bodyguard, I am only in debt to you."

Emmy nodded," As well as I am in debt to you."

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It was a horrible idea to split up, but Henry was insistent that he knew what he was doing and wanted to keep her out of trouble. It was annoying that she had to sit on the sidelines and stay out of the danger yet again, but it was touching that he wanted to keep her safe. So that was how she ended up sitting on a park bench down the street from where the action was happening.

Even with her friend (husband? Boyfriend? She wasn't sure what their status was yet) on his way to retrieve her, Lissa was sick with worry. What if Emmy had gotten hurt? What if she had died? Lissa could barely handle Emmeryn's death, how was she supposed to deal with Emmy's? No! She wasn't going to be dead. She had survived an apocalyptic future, she could definitely take care of a few gangsters...right?

Lissa was becoming incredibly impatient. Who said that she couldn't take care of herself? She figured that being a mother made a person a lot braver, because she would've run away with her tail between her legs two months ago. With newfound courage, she picked up a thick stick and cautiously made her was towards the alley," Where did Henry get off to? I thought I saw him go this way...," Without support, she didn't know how far she'd make it. Lissa groaned and let her makeshift weapon drop from her hands,"...Ugh, maybe I should just forget it. If he doesn't have one, either...," She was yanked out of her thoughts when someone reached forward and dragged her into the alley," Aaah!"

The mobster smirked as he observed her defenseless state. When he was positive there would be no way for her to fight back, he pointed his gun at her," Keh heh! Let's have all your money, girly! Unless you wanna lose that pretty head."

Lissa grabbed her purse off of her shoulder and swung it around like a weapon instead of giving him what he wanted," S-Stay back! I'm not afraid to use this!"

The man burst out laughing at her feeble attempt to protect herself and reached out to grab it from her when a loud yell interrupted him," No one hurts the mother of Owain! SACRED...STOOOOOONES!" All of the sudden, a baseball bat was swung onto the head of the man, knocking him out cold. As he collapsed, Lissa could finally see the people who had helped her out; the one with the baseball hat was tall and somewhat muscular with spikes white hair, while the boy standing behind him was more slender with brown hair. The white haired boy grinned when the two made eye contact," Blessed Mother! I have crossed oceans of time to find-," His friend elbowed him, silently telling him to tone his oddness down," But-Oh, forget it. I'm your kid from the future! Look at the signet ring upon my finger," He held up a familiar gray ring with a crow head on it," Behold, a perfect match to yours! Unique in all the world, and yet here lie two. Proof positive my claims are true-"

Lissa blinked, still holding her purse up in its defensive position,"...Who did what now? Hold on. Slow down. Back up. Start again."

"Um... Sorry about that. Look, the important thing here is that I have-"

"Owain," His friend dead panned," You're parents aren't married yet. Why would she have the ring?"

Suddenly, everything became clear. This was the boy Lucina was talking about. It was odd that even though it wasn't her that gave birth to this version of her son, seeing him safe made her feel like crying tears of joy," ...Oh, gods. Owain."

The pale haired boy tilted his head, confused on how his mother knew his name," Huh?"

"That's your name. Isn't it?" She added hopefully.

Owain grinned enthusiastically, giving a smug look towards his friend. The other boy just rolled his eyes," Indeed it is! And none have ever been prouder to bear it! For it is the name you gave me, Mother! I've come to part the dark clouds that hang forebodingly over this era! How did you know?"

"Lucina told me."

This comment piqued the brunettes interests," Wait, Lucina's here? Is she safe?"

Lissa nodded," Yup, she's with her mom right now! Noire and Emmy are also-" She slapped her forehead with her palm," Oh no, I forgot! Emmy is in danger! We have to find her!"

"What? A fair maiden is in danger," The brunette tutted," My job is never done-"

"This is my sister we're talking about, Inigo!" Owain snapped," You're not allowed to flirt with her!"

The blonde girl clapped her hands together to regain their attention," This is no time to mess around, guys! We need to find her!"

Both boys nodded confidently and readied their makeshift weapons," Of course! Lead us into battle, oh valiant mother!"

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By the time Henry found his daughter, most of the gangsters were already either unconscious or dead. If that wasn't shocking enough, the only people he found alive were May and Gangrel of all people. The Plegian boy was unconscious on her back," Woah, what happened? What are you two doing here?"

May glanced up and almost dropped the boy," Dad!? You actually came!"

Dad? Hold on, the blonde freshman that hardly spoke in band (or in general) was his daughter? Lissa hadn't warned him about that. Yet, now that he looked at her, he could see a lot of her mother in her," Wowza, you're all bloody! I know that bleeding can be fun sometimes, but not if you're hurt."

She giggled, relieved that the mood could be lighthearted again," Don't worry, it's only Gangrel's blood...which doesn't seem like a very nice thing to say now, but you know what I mean."

Henry nodded, observing her for a few more minutes before blatantly asking," Are you my daughter?"

Her eyes widened slightly," Oh, d-did mom not say? Well this is awkward...," She regained her composture and pressed on," I know this is going to be hard to believe, but I am truly your daughter. Now I don't really have any proof other than your wedding ring," Emmy shyly held it up as an example before shuffling the gold band back into her pocket," Of course you aren't even dating my mother yet, so I can't really expect you to accept me..."

"Nah, I believe you. After all, you look so much like her. Is your name really May, though?"

"No, not really," She straightened up," My name is Emmylene Accadia Crow, but everyone calls me Emmy."

He grinned in approval," Nya ha, that's a cool name! Now, why are you carrying Gangrel on your back? He's not a very good person."

Emmy bit her lip," He kind of saved my life, so I'm going to take him to a hospital...or something," She shuffled awkwardly, obviously keeping something she wanted to ask inside of her. Before Henry could question her on it, she blurted," Please tell me you didn't turn mom away! She doesn't show it very well, but she really likes you!"

The white haired boy laid his hand on her shoulder in a reassuring way, but was interrupted when said blonde tackled him into a hug," Henry, are you okay?"

"Right as rain!"

Lissa went straight from the boy she liked to Emmy and took her daughter's face in her hands," Oh my gods, you're all bloody! Are you hurt? Why is Gangrel on your back?!"

The younger girl felt her cheeks grow pink at the public display of affection," I'm fine, mom. I told you I would be-" Her mother wasted no time in flicking her child's forehead," Ow! What was that for?"

"Don't ever make me do that again. I don't know what I would've done with myself if something happened to you. Promise that you won't pull a stunt like that again."

Emmy sighed," You know I can't do that. The sole reason we came back was to protect you guys-"

"I don't care what your purpose was, you can't value your life below mine," Lissa scolded seriously," I should have been the one to push you towards your father because no matter how smart or strong you are, you're also only fourteen and have endured enough pain to last a lifetime. If we fight, we fight together. Got it?"

Honestly, Emmy was shocked. From the moment she was eleven, she had been handed a gun and told that it was either kill or be killed. While her relatives and friends stuck by her, others had not. She was used to having to put up walls and act a lot older than she actually was. It didn't occur to her that in any other situation, the mother would be the one pushing her child towards safety until that point. When she had traveled to the past, she was told not to expect anything from her parents and was most likely going to be rejected by them. Yet here she was, getting lectured by a sixteen year old who wasn't even technically her mother and a boy who believed that she was telling the truth without any significant proof.

Was this what a family felt like? Yes, for someone from a future where death was always present, she was lucky to have her brother and Lucina, but to have her parents prepared to protect her almost out of nowhere made her eyes prickle with tears. Emmy hardly noticed Gangrel drop off her back as her vision blurred and her body shuddered with sobs," I-I'm s-sorry!"

Lissa winced at the sight of her daughter crying and pulled her into a hug," N-No, it's okay! I shouldn't of snapped like I did...I'm not quite used to this whole parenting thing yet-"

Henry reached forward and wrapped his arms around the both of them," Well, if we're anything like Leo Frank, I'm sure we'll get the HANG of it! Nya ha, slay me!"

Emmy cracked a smile," Gods dad, I forgot how morbid you were."

"How could you do such a deed? His twisted mind defines his entire identity!"

The younger blonde nearly jumped out of her parents arms and let out a cry of joy when she saw her older brother watching the scene," Owain, it's you!" Emmy burst forward and took a flying leap into her brother's arms, burying her face into his shirt," Oh thank gods you're alright!"

He chuckled and smoothed her hair," I should be saying the same thing to you, baby sister. Hey Inigo, we-" Owain turned to the vacant spot behind him and tilted his head in confusion," He was here a minute ago. Did he leave?"

"Looks like Gangrel left too," Lissa pointed out, motioning towards the place where the redhead had once been unconscious," He must've slipped out when he realized who you were, Emmy."

The blonde frowned," What? No! He knew who I was! Why would he leave? Was he scared that you guys wouldn't want to take care of him?" Emmy pouted," What a coward..."

Noticing his sister's distress, Owain wrapped his arm around her," Come on, I've been awaiting the glorious moment of reuniting with our lovely cousin and one of our dearest friend!" While still a bit hesitant, Emmy allowed her older brother to drag her out of the alley.

Henry was about to follow them out when Lissa caught his arm," Uh...Henry? Can we talk?"

"Sure!" He waited to speak again until their children had exited the premises, furrowing his eyebrow once he did so," I scared you, didn't I?"

Lissa smiled tiredly," I was going to ask you the same thing."

"W-What? Why?"

"You just figured out that you are the father of two children and married to me in the future-I mean, a future. Not only that, but...," She squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her fists," I kissed you."

Henry nodded slowly, trying to figure out what was the frightening part of all this," Yeah, you did. So?"

The blonde's eyes widened in a split second," _So_? Is that all you have to say? Isn't it obvious?!"

"No, not really."

Lissa desperately wanted to leave him right then and there, but the small strand of hope in her that was furiously begging her to finish what she started kept her feet planted," Fine, I'll tell you straight out, so you better listen!"

"I'm all ears-how cool would it be to have a ton of ears? I think it SOUNDS like fun, nya ha-"

"Henry, I want to date you!"

The white haired boy blinked," Huh?"

The flutist pressed on," I want to be your girlfriend and go on dates with you. I know you're weird, but I'm weird too. I figured that...maybe we can be weird together?"

Henry smiled sadly," Are you sure I'm not too weird? After all, I've never been in a solid relationship before; I wouldn't know what to do."

"Me neither," Lissa giggled before hopefully adding," But we can figure something out...right?"

He hesitantly reached out and scooped her hand into his, squeezing it reassuringly," I'd like that, because I like you, nya ha!"

"Really?"

"Is a group of crows called a murder?" The white haired boy laughed," Of course!"

Lissa chuckled at his way of accepting her and wrapped her arm around his torso," Good! Now all you have to do is help me tell my brother and Frederick and come out of it alive!"

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**Hey guys! So LissaxHenry is a couple now, and their happy little family has reunited! Inigo and Gangrel have disappeared though...I wonder if they'll show up again? Emmy is a fun character to write because she is like her parents at times, but she is also like Chrom and Robin. Is there a reason for that? You'll find out soon! Why did Henry turn into a terrifying being? Is there an unknown backstory? Hmm? HMMM? Okay, I'm done arising questions. I'm getting back into the groove of writing this story now that I have a fairly good idea of what's going to happen in this arc. I'm pretty sure that the next chapter will contain two people that may become a couple (not in that chapter, of course, but it's progress) so see if you can guess who they are! Review time!**

**Amy47101: ****I would watch that. Ha, I unintentionally put daddy Henry in this chapter (more towards Emmy than Owain, seeing that he came so late in the chapter). I've never put Ricken and Maribelle together either, but that is because they are both semi-weak units until you train them up (then they are awesome). Cherche and Lon'qu have a sort of past because they knew the same people, but I'm not sure if they officially met until the Shepherds. Gregor is great, I'm using him more now because he is great! Minerva is Cherche's French Horn...and mellaphone...and dog. I've mentioned her briefly, but it's hard to bring up in the story unless someone actually goes to her house. I agree with your opinions on your two characters, and it might just be that I've never used Kjelle that I'm not partial to her. I need to get all my units again, I miss the progress I had on my first playthrough. Good, I like those pairings (though Cynthia and Gerome are going to be with other people in my story). I can't wait to read more of your story in my freetime, but it might be awhile because I have band camp next week (god help me). Thanks for reviewing!  
**

**AquaticSilver:** **I'm not sure if you've reviewed either, and I'm not sure if you're at this part in the story yet if you've reread everything, but thank you! I hope you like (or liked it so far) the story! Thank you for commenting!**

**MissShane12:** **Thank you! I'm glad you like my OCs, they're fun to create and write (I think Hewitt and Emmy are my favorites because they have the biggest parts in the story)! Aww, thank you! I always get elated whenever someone tells me they like my writing style/writing! I will update every Saturday I can! Thank you for commenting, and I hope to hear more from you in the future! **

**Tairulz: ****I'm glad you like the story, I'm always happy to hear good feedback from my readers! Yay, I'm glad that my story still makes sense even though I only now know what I'm doing with this arc! Huzzah! I can't wait to hear more from you, thank you for reviewing! **

**Okay, so want to hear some irony? Next week is my band camp week. I'm going to die (it's from 9:00 in the morning to 9:00 at night and we're not allowed to leave). Then again, there are most likely more hardcore band camps than mine, so I won't complain. Even with all this, though, I'm definitely posting my chapter next Saturday (which most likely means I'm writing the majority of it tomorrow and Saturday morning). Thanks for reading, and I'll see you guys next week! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	24. Chapter 24 The Night on the Bridge

**Hey guys! Sorry this is a day late, it took me awhile to figure out what to write for this chapter. WARNING; this chapter contains suicidal elements in it. If you are uncomfortable reading about it, skip to the first break in the chapter. This chapter is pretty serious for the first half, and it lightens up a little bit near the end. I won't say much more and will let you go on and read ahead (band camp is over, though! YAY!). Enjoy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem.**

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Sumia used to live a pretty normal life before Robin became her roommate. She had a best friend and a crush on Chrom, just like every other girl in school. While her life seemed boring at the time, she was beginning to long the peaceful normalcy that it used to be. Instead, her best friend had a crush on her roommate's boyfriend, and the boy Sumia had a crush on was only using her.

The brunette stared at the ceiling, indulged in self pity. She didn't know why she was complaining so much, Robin probably had it much worse than she did. After all, her father was the principal of Plegia and she had a long lost sister that seemed to have a vendetta against her. Sumia sighed melodramatically and sat up, deciding that getting the mail might help her feel better. Her parents had promised to respond to her letter as soon as possible, even though they were visiting that weekend, and she wanted to talk to them as soon as possible about her problems.

Much to her surprise, there was a sticky note attached to the mailbox. Sumia quirked her eyebrow curiously and scanned it, only to discover that it was from Robin. Apparently she was spending the night at Lissa's house and that they were out of milk because Lucina had insisted on baking cookies with her. The brunette groaned, cursing her roommate for forgetting that she was planning on making a cake to surprise her parents. That meant that she had to go out that night in order to get supplies, even though all she wanted to do was curl into a ball of despair and watch Dumbo for the millionth time.

She eventually decided to go and made sure she had a few dollars before hopping on her bike and heading across town. Due to the fact that the days were getting shorter, it was already dark outside and somewhat chilly. Sumia huddled her jacket closer around herself, glad that the grocery store was only just across the bridge.

She was so relieved that her trip was over that she almost didn't realize that she had just passed someone. She would've continued biking if that person wasn't sitting on the edge of the railing. Sumia's eyes widened in horror as she pulled her bicycle to a screeching halt, clumsily loosing control and falling over onto her bottom. She hissed in pain and got onto her feet, ready to confront the person for distracting her. It was most likely some stupid kid that wasn't thinking of the danger they were putting themselves in," Hey, you know that it's not safe to-," Before she could finish, a car passed by, it's headlights illuminating a head of eerily familiar red hair," G-Gaius? Is that you?"

She expected to see him in his usual, smug attitude. After all, he was excluding himself from band activities again because she assumed he didn't end up bedding her. What did that mean for her now? Was he going to kidnap her? It was dark out, and no one would know until Robin came back to find her missing. Then what? Would they pin the crime on the Grimleal? Most likely. There was a very little chance that Sumia would make it out if it played out that way. She clenched her fists and slowly starting edging towards her bike, preparing to make a run for it if she had to.

What she saw when Gaius turned around stopped her in her tracks; his entire face was etched in fear, his body was shaking profusely, and his eyes were rimmed red. It was hard to see, but there was also a clean cut on his throat that looked fairly new. Sumia's mind went blank as she began to understand what might be happening. Was he considering what she thought he was? The brunette cautiously took a step towards him, praying that he wouldn't jump," What's wrong? W-What are you doing here?"

He turned away quickly, making sure to face straight ahead," You wouldn't understand, Sumia."

She winced at his usage of her real name, nervously fiddling with her hands," I want to try-"

"I don't see why you care," Gaius growled," You're scared of me now."

The clarinetist slowly made her way to the railing next to him, using it as an anchor to keep her grounded," Gaius, please-"

"Leave me alone!" He boomed, making her flinch," I don't want you to try to understand, because you never will! You don't get what it's like to have hope for a better life, only to have everything fall out from under your feet! You don't know what it's like when every time you make a friend you feel you can trust, something forces them away! You don't get what it's like to go home and be treated like garbage because your adoptive father only lets you go to school to relay him information about police activity! You don't understand that I have lied to him for a month straight about what's going on, and that he figured out today! He has been threatening to turn me into the Grimleal to be tortured for the loaf of fucking bread I stole when I was twelve since he took me in! I'm disposable to him! I'm nothing! My life has absolutely no meaning!" Sumia watched in horror as his grip around the bar loosened," I don't want to be treated like trash anymore-"

"WAIT!" Gaius paused, carefully observing the girl as she slid onto the top of the bar with him," Y-You're right. I c-can't understand what you go through-"

"Sumia, what are you doing-"

She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking just as much as he was," M-My life isn't bad, but it isn't p-perfect either," The girl took a deep breath," If you jump, I'm going too."

The ginger's eyebrows nearly popped off his head in shock," What?! No! Get the fuck off of there before you accidentally fall off!"

Sumia shook her head furiously," I'm not leaving without you! Please don't do this!"

"I'm not your concern anymore, just leave!"

"No!"

She knew that this wasn't the right way to handle the situation, but she couldn't think of any other options. Even though this was the boy that had used her and broken her heart, she wasn't going to let him die. Not when she could prevent it. He reached over to push her backwards onto the road, but she slid out of his reach," I'm serious, Sumia! You have a good life! Don't waste it on me! People will miss you-"

"What about y-you, huh?" She stuttered," Chrom and the band cares about you, even if you made s-some bad decisions."

He shook his head, slowly leaning forward as he did so," You're wrong there-"

"I'D MISS YOU!" She screamed, tears forcing themselves out of her eyes as she did so. Fear wracked her entire body with her brain telling her to shut up before she said something she'd regret. Unfortunately, Sumia wasn't in the listening mood," Please don't leave me! I need you! I need to get to know the real you! Please!"

Gaius felt something tug inside of him, and it was only then that he realized Sumia was the only person that truly cared about him. If anyone was going to get him off that bridge, it was going to be her. Part of him wanted to give up so badly and take the easy way out so that he could finally feel content. No worries. No problems. Just peace.

Yet here Sumia was, standing on the edge with him and begging him not to do what he had been so sure about only minutes before. He suddenly second guessed himself, glancing down at how far below the river was and how rocky the cliffs seemed. Was this really the way he wanted to go? Was giving up really the best option?

A wave of terror crashed over him all in one moment, frantically yelling at him to get off that ledge before he made a bad decision. Gaius pulled himself off as fast as he could, stumbling a few feet backwards just so that he would never have to see that drop again. Sumia was quick to follow him, anxiously asking a slur of questions that he tuned out.

It only hit him then that he had almost attempted to kill himself. He had almost wasted his life when he bettered his life. Heck, he almost didn't have a life to think about. Gaius felt hot tears run down his cheeks as horrified sobs wracked from his body. He buried his face in one of his hands, using the other one to hug himself. He had almost died.

He felt Sumia ease him onto the ground and wrap her arms around his head, coaxing it into her chest. Gaius eagerly accepted the comfort he was offering her and held her with all his might, dreading that she might leave him if he didn't. She didn't seem to mind his tight hold and gently stroked his hair to try and calm him down," Y-You really scared me."

The ginger didn't respond, knowing all to well that he was not in the right mind to do anything but try and relieve the almost constant stress he had experienced throughout most of his life. All he wanted to do was block out the world and pretend nothing existed except himself and Sumia. His only reply was a desperate sob as he burrowed himself closer to her.

Sumia seemed to understand, especially since she was shaken up herself," It'll be okay," She cooed as comfortingly as she could," I won't let anything bad happen to you. I promise."

Much like the first time she had spoken, he didn't respond right away. The sound of the river that almost swallowed the two of them whole lapped against the beach below them, filling the tense silence with it's presence. Sumia tried to ignore it, instead focusing on the sound of his beating heart. She had taken it for granted, and she never wanted to again.

"I only did it to protect you."

The brunette blinked, surprised at his choice of words," W-What?"

Gaius tiredly looked up at her, exhaustion clearly filling his features," They would've gone after you if I didn't. At first it was only because you were in band and I didn't want to do community service, but now you're one of the only people I give a crap about. I didn't want any of that to happen, it just...did."

Hope sparked up inside of her," So our friendship was real?"

"I wouldn't have gotten into that screwy pirate business if it wasn't."

She almost laughed from the relief that one sentence brought her. Not only was everything his so-called-friends said was a lie, but he was sort of acting like himself again. He actually cared about her just as much as she cared about him. It was real.

As soon as the respite washed away, guilt began to eat away at her. She had unintentionally turned the band against him because she hadn't been open minded. If she had stayed at the movie theater long enough for him to explain himself, she would have saved both him and herself a lot of grief. They could've found a boy for Cordelia after their success with Chrobin and built a normal, teenage relationship. Instead, they were scared out of their wits and holding each other for their dear lives on the bridge they had almost committed suicide on.

Her mind wandered to what he had said earlier, wondering if she was one of the friends he had talked about trusting. If so...who was the other? There was also the fact that his adoptive father was only using him as a spy and threatened him-

Hold on. Sumia abruptly pulled away from him and lightly traced her finger along the scar on his neck," This wasn't here before."

"It's nothing-"

"That's obviously not true! Where did you get this?"

If she thought he had been serious the day he warned her about watching who she dated (which made a lot more sense now that she knew what he was talking about), he was almost cold with how he acted," My life is dangerous, Sumia, and I don't want you getting anymore involved in it than you actually are."

The brunette frowned," It was your adoptive father, wasn't it?"

"I said to stop-"

"You can't go back there tonight, not after he did that to you," Sumia murmured, half to herself and half to him.

Gaius was about to yell at her for trying to get involved, but he knew that it was futile at a moment like this. He sighed in defeat and ran his hand though his hair," I know, but he'll send out people to look for me if I'm on the streets."

"Then you can stay at my place-"

"There is no way in hell I'm doing that!" He stated," I'm not letting all of this fall back on you and Robin! The Grimleal are already getting suspicions from her, I'm not letting them figure out that they can kill two birds with one stone if they get their hands on you."

Sumia crossed her arms huffily," Well I'm not letting you go back to a person who is obviously going to hurt you again!"

"I can handle it-"

"Can you?!"

Gaius opened his mouth to protest, but the words died in his mouth. She was right. He was in no physical or mental state to go back to his house, especially after what had just happened," Fine. What do you suggest we do?"

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Chrom's house was incredibly packed. Along with Lissa's son, Owain, came Henry. That could only mean one thing; Henry was Lissa's future husband. Henry. Chrom was beyond surprised and a little weirded out, seeing that Henry was a loose cannon. It didn't make him feel any better that he wanted to stay the night to make sure that his family would be safe.

On top of them, Lissa had also invited Robin to spend the night so that they could have "sisterly bonding". Chrom figured that she was just going to pester his girlfriend the entire night with relationship questions. He couldn't really complain, though. Lucina seemed incredibly excited at the fact that her mother was staying over, and Chrom was going to make sure to sneak Robin away so that they could have some alone time.

Frederick and Tharja seemed to be getting exasperated at the growing number of children in their house, especially since they only originally had a baby girl. Now there was Chrom and Lissa to look after with their children and the older version of Noire. While they loved seeing how the kids grew up and their...erm, unique personalities, life was becoming more complicated while juggling the lives of seven teenagers and an infant.

The two were already tired from handling their children with Robin and Henry there as well, so when they answered the door and found Sumia and Gaius in the other side of it, they almost collapsed," What are you doing here? It's getting very late."

Gaius's eyes were fixated on the ground, so Sumia was the one that answered," Uh, well, we were hoping that you'd let us stay here for the night..."

Tharja groaned and left the room at that moment, leaving Frederick alone with the teenagers," Why on earth are you planning on staying here of all places?"

"Gaius's home isn't very safe right now, and if my landlady sees that I'm bringing a boy alone in my apartment, she'll tell my mom," The brunette answered quickly, praying that he would believe her.

He didn't (they don't call him Frederick the wary for nothing)," I feel that Mr. Milis can take care of himself, and that you're probably overreacting-" The man stopped mid sentence when the scar on Gaius's neck. He wasn't sure if it was the best option to let the two into his house, seeing that they had a rocky past and he didn't want to lose track of them, but they weren't lying when they said that something bad was going on in his house. What would Emmeryn do? Frederick cursed under his breath and held the door open wide enough for them to step in," Ignore what I said earlier; you two are welcome to stay the night, but only for tonight. We'll figure out what to do in the morning."

Sumia bowed her head thankfully," This means a lot to us, Mr. Warry! Thank you!"

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Lucina glanced at the clock, making sure that it was past 2:00 A.M. before sneaking out of the house. She had double checked that everyone was sleeping and made sure to leave a note for Owain, the person who had told her where the person she was looking for was, so that she'd have a lesser chance of getting caught.

She hugged her jacket closer to her as she ventured deep into Ylisse, trying to remember the directions that Owain gave her. This was a risky thing to do, especially after all the worry that Lissa's family had caused, but Lucina had to know that he was still alive.

The blue haired girl finally reached her destination after almost fifteen minutes of walking; an abandoned building that stood on the edge of the city. Most of the windows were boarded up and the fence surrounding the building warned intruders to stay away, but Lucina ignored them and hopped the wire. It didn't take long for her to find a window with a loose board that she'd be able to sneak in through. It almost seemed too easy.

Lucina pulled her pocket knife out, just in case someone decided to try something. This was what he had trained her for; finding hope in a dark time. After all, Inigo was the one that helped her when...

She furiously wiped the stray tear away from her eye, reprimanding herself for thinking back to that day. That was the day she had failed her family. The day she had lost control. The day she had killed her first person. The blue haired girl shuddered and prayed that her eyes weren't puffy as she entered the building. She didn't want to give off a weak aura to those who would want to hurt her, and that meant that she had to be focused. Lucina kept close to the wall, her eyes constantly flickering around to check her surroundings. There were obviously people other than Inigo in the building, but much like at her house, they all seemed be asleep.

While having potential threats asleep was a good thing, it also had it's flaws; how was she supposed to find Inigo before the sun rose? There were several floors in this building, and even more rooms than she could count. Lucina decided that the best she could do at the moment was follow the walls and hope for the best.

Before she could stop herself, she tripped over someone. The blue haired girl concealed her surprised squeak and got to her feet as fast as she could, praying that she didn't wake them up. An annoyed grunt and a shift in the person's body confirmed her fears. Lucina cursed and spun on her heel, booking it up the stairs to avoid a fight. While she wasn't scared of being attacked by a hobo, she knew that there would be reinforcements and she would most likely be outnumbered.

She barely made it halfway up when one of the boards gave out beneath her, sending her foot through the stair. Lucina hissed in pain and tried to yank it back out, but her foot hardly budged. Great, now she was trapped. The unsheathed her pocket knife and pointed it in the direction she came from, deciding that she wasn't going down without a fight," I'm not afraid of you!"

The words left her mouth before she realized what they meant, eerily reminding her all too much of what happened two years ago...

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_He was dead, and she hadn't been able to do anything about it. Lucina hated herself for letting her emotions get the best of her and killing the man. Yes, he deserved it much more than most people, but the fact that he could've become a better person haunted her thoughts. Not only that, but she had just broken the pacifism promise that she had made with her teammates, and they didn't seem to trust her very much anymore._

_She clenched her fists angrily, furious with herself for letting herself stoop down to the Grimleal's level. Yes, her father had told her that it was either kill or be killed, but she didn't want either. Now it seemed that she didn't have a choice._

_That was why she was standing in the Ylisse's Last Hope recruitment line dressed as a boy. She had tried to convince them to let her in as a woman, but they wouldn't budge, saying that she was too weak to ever catch up to the others. Deciding that she needed this in order to protect her friends from dying in the future, she disguised herself and signed up._

_It turned out to be one of the worst decisions she had made in a long time._

_The chief, Chief Fargo, was relentless. There were little to no breaks in training, they only ate what was necessary, and in order to join the YLH, you had to murder an animal in front of him. Fargo also seemed to decide that Lucina, disguised as Marth, was his favorite subject to torment because of her smaller size. She almost always ran an extra lap or did fifty push-ups for not standing up straight enough._

_Today was one of the days where Fargo went way too far. Training had been nearly over that day, and all of the recruits were standing at attention to wait for dismissal. The man smugly passed every soldier, only halting when he reached Lucina. She silently cursed inside her head, knowing that he wasn't going to leave her be. What form of training would he put her through today? One hundred sit ups? Ten laps around the camp? She didn't want to know._

_Without warning, he slammed his fist into her cheek, sending her flying back onto her butt," You were supposed to be at attention," He sneered sadistically. Lucina knew better than to talk or fight back, so she sent a desperate glance for help towards the other recruits. Most of them ignored her, but there were a few that winced in her favor or looked concerned. It became obvious that she wasn't going to get any aid, so she tried to get back onto her feet. Fargo was having none of that and kicked her legs out from underneath her," Such a pitiful human being. Can't stand up for himself. Look upon this weakling, students, and take note of how-"_

_"I'm not afraid of you," She interrupted," I'm sick of you pushing me around just so that-" Before she could finish, he sent his foot into her jaw, immediately knocking her out._

_When she woke up, she was surprised to find herself in one of the tents. It took her a few seconds to clear her mind and remember exactly what had happened before the shock hit her. Did someone actually help her? She figured that they would've left her in the mud._

_As she was pondering who her savior was, a semi familiar looking boy entered the tent and smiled," Oh good, you're finally awake! Chief Fargo was pretty harsh on you yesterday-"_

_"Yesterday?" Lucina rubbed her head," How long have I been unconscious?"_

_"Almost 24 hours," The brown haired boy plopped down on the bed next to her," You know, I used to be the runt of the litter. He loved to pick on me, so I decided to give him a reason not to. I trained really hard whenever I got any free time, and in a matter of time, I became one of the topped ranked units in my squadron."_

_The blue haired girl clutched her knees angrily," Because you became better, I'm the one that he moved on to. Gee thanks."_

_The boy rolled his eyes," You're not very cheery, are you Lucina?"_

_"What?!" She nervously looked around before asking," How did you know who I was?"_

_He smirked," Severa gave me a heads up. She told me that you entered this program disguised as a boy in order to redeem yourself for letting him...," The boy paused, suddenly solemn," Is...Is he really dead?"_

_Lucina stifled a sob that tried to crawl it's way out of her throat and nodded," It was my fault. I didn't think things through thoroughly enough-"_

_"It's not your fault," The brunette reassured," You couldn't control what happened that day, but you can control what happens in the future."_

_The blue haired girl snorted," I don't see how I'm supposed to accomplish that if the only thing Fargo is going to do is harass me."_

_"I know exactly how you are; I'm going to train you," He stood up and brushed off his pants before offering her a hand," My name is Inigo, by the way."_

_Lucina snapped her fingers, relieved that she finally could remember who he was," Oh, now I know who you are!"_

_"I'm not surprised. I've been told I'm quite popular with the ladies-"_

_"No, dimwit," The girl groaned," You're Lon'qu and Olivia's child! I used to see you on Holidays before...," Her smile faded as her mind wandered back to the day her parents died," Before..."_

_Inigo laid his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it," Come on, Marth, if you want to catch up with the other, you're going to have to start training. We don't have time to think about what happened," He smiled encouragingly," Everything will be okay now."_

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Lucina shook away her memory and point her knife towards the shadow of a person standing at the bottom of the steps," I mean it! I'm not afraid!"

"There's no reason you should be," An extremely familiar voice chuckled," If anything, I'm the one that should be scared. I mean, you tripped over me, and now you're pointing a knife at me."

Lucina squinted through the darkness, her nearly lost hope rekindling," Inigo, is that you?"

The boy blinked," Lucina?" He carefully sped up the stairs and sat by her side, using one of his hands to cup her face. Unlike his parents, Inigo only became shy with strangers (not including women, of course). Lucina almost blushed at his contact, but shooed the butterflies away. She was just glad to see him, that was all. He was one of the children she had the deepest past with, so to see he was safe relieved her beyond belief. Once he was satisfied that it was really her, he dropped his hand," What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," She replied," Owain said you two had lived here until he revealed himself," The blue haired girl rubbed her arm nervously," Speaking of which, why didn't you come with him? We'd find you a place to live that's safer than it is here."

Inigo sighed," While my parents are getting close to becoming a couple, it is going to take them a little bit. I can just waltz in and tell them I'm their kid. It'd give them a heart attack."

"But Henry didn't know Emmy was his child. She kept it a secret-"

"And we all know how that turned out," Inigo shrugged," I don't mind waiting. It's not that bad here if you're in the same boat as these people. I think that it's better to watch what happens between my parents instead of accidentally rush it," He wiggled one of his eyebrows at her," Thought I do love your visits."

She blushed a dark color than earlier and pushed him down a step," Don't flirt with me, Inigo!"

He laughed, producing a warm sound that made Lucina feel safe and comforted," You've always been a downer, I don't know why I'm so surprised that you're still one."

"I'm not a downer!"

"Sure you're not," Inigo grinned," But I am serious about the visiting thing. You should keep me company-I mean, updated if something happens," This time, his cheeks were the ones slightly pink," You don't have to come all the time, but you know..."

Lucina nodded," Of course! I'll make sure to pop by with...erm, updates was it?-whenever something happens."

The brunette beamed," Perfect! Now that we've got that out of the way, you seem a bit stuck. Need some help?" He didn't wait for her answer and wrapped his hands around her ankle, skillfully wiggling it out of the hole it had gotten stuck in," I remember when you used to be a huge clutz. I was under the impression that you had outgrown that, but I guess not!" Inigo laughed and helped her to her feet," Alright, you better start heading home. Wouldn't want your parents to get worried!"

Lucina silently agreed, but she didn't like that she was leaving Inigo behind," I will come back. I promise."

He smiled softly, watching as her figure disappeared into the darkness of Ylisse at night," I know you will."

* * *

**As I said before, this chapter got pretty dark. I had a lot of ideas of how to get Sumia and Gaius to interact again, but none of them either worked for the characters or would be enough for them to get over their pasts. This also adds a bit more mystery to Gaius's character. Lucina also had a very complex past (one of the most well developed ones in this story) so the snip-bit I gave you in the story was only a sneak peak for the bigger expanse that explains why she acts why she does. Inigo also is very smiley. I love Inigo. 'Nough said. Review Time!**

**Amy47101:** **Henry is one of the greatest, but it is sort of hard to write him because you have to come up with sinister puns (those aren't things you can just look up online. I've checked, lol). Yeah, Ricken definitely has feelings of some sort towards Maribelle, so I like how even if they don't marry, they'll still be friends! Ricken is actually one of my favorite male characters (I married him on my second playthrough. He's a sweetheart)! Gregor is glorious, and if he was a bit younger, I might have married him. Minerva the dog is mentioned at the end of the second chapter (I think) when Cherche says that she and Virion can't go to the police station because they are washing her dog. I don't know what chapter I mentioned her name, but in one of her supports with either Kellam or Bryony (or maybe Robin, there are so many things to keep track of in this story) she mentions that she basically names everything Minerva. Thank you, I was so sore and tired. It was exhausting, but I'm okay now! I CAN'T WAIT EITHER, IT SHOULD JUST COME OUT NOW! Thanks for commenting!**

**Golden-Lightning:** **Aww, thank you! I'm glad you like it! I agree, it's getting harder and harder to come across multi chapter fanfics these days. I don't blame you for not seeing eye to eye with some of my couples, they're weird choices, but I like that you enjoy how the characters are evolving and playing out! The realistic setting makes things both easier and harder to write this story for because you have normal speech and clothes, but it's harder because some of the events don't play out very well in real life. Oh well! Thank you so much, I hope to hear more feedback from you!**

**Ahylianshepherd:**** Yay, I'm happy that you're enjoying my story! I'm looking forward to getting further into the story and revealing more stuff! Thank you for commenting! **

**ANNOUNCEMENT TIME! So, now that school is coming up and my life is becoming busier and busier, I'm going to say that instead of posting on Saturday, I will end up posting ON THE WEEKEND. This means that the chapter could either be up on Saturday or Sunday. That's the biggest change I'm making, but it's so that if it's not finished by Saturday, I don't have to stay up really late writing. I hope you guys are okay with this! Next week's chapter, for example, will most likely be posted on Sunday because I'm going to a theme park on Friday-Saturday (I'm super busy, it's funny). Okay, so I'll see you guys next week! Thank you for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	25. Chapter 25 Disowned by Time

**Hey guys! Look, I'm actually posting on time! YAY! Well, I have good reason to this time; we introduce a new character in this chapter! Parts of this chapter are cute and funny, but there's a part in it that is more depressing. I've also decided that this arc is going to have half of it follow the game, and half of it introduce the children characters. Anywho, enjoy the chapter! **

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

The next morning was awkward to say the least.

Robin spent almost the entire breakfast staring daggers at Gaius, who was half-heartedly stirring his bowl of cereal with his spoon. Sumia kept her gaze fixated on her lap and would sometimes open her mouth to say something, but the words often died in her mouth. Lucina was asleep at the table, Chrom was glaring at Henry, and in return, Lissa was glaring at Chrom. Emmy kept sending anxious glances out the window, still a bit jumpy from the previous day's attack. Seeing that the only two kids that weren't included in any form of drama were Owain and Noire, he decided to start up a conversation.

He dropped his bowl in the sink and meandered over to where the brunette was trying to reach a book from on top of the fridge," Hey Noire! What are you up to?"

Noire squeaked and immediately dropped her hands to her sides," Eep!...O-oh!" A soft smile found it's way onto her face when she realized who it was," Hello, Owain. I'm just trying to get this book, but it's higher up than I'm used to...especially since I'm tall...and an adult...and pathetic."

"You're not pathetic at all! Here, lemme help you."

Noire noted that Owain was only a few inches taller than her and would probably have less success than she did," Um, but...are you sure?"

"Sure, I'm sure!" He grinned," Just step aside, and let your white knight take over!"

The brunette nodded meekly and shuffled out of his way," I'm sorry for the trouble. Thank you."

Owain laughed and reached for it," I'm a lone wolf by nature, but the call of an innocent in distress still-" Without warning, his foot slipped out from underneath him, sending him flying to the ground.

She giggled, producing an enchanting bell like sound that seemed to brighten the room, even if it wasn't by much," D-Don't say I didn't warn you."

"No worries, Madame!" The white haired boy hopped back onto his feet," I shall get it this time!" True to his word, Owain managed to reach the book without falling again. Unfortunately, as soon as he pulled it off of the fridge, the book slipped out of his hands and landed on his toe. The sixteen year old yelped and hopped on his good foot, massaging the other one," By the red hair of Eliwood! This thing is really heavy! What is it? War and Peace?"

Noire bent down and scooped up the book in both of her hands," No, it's a cookbook. I thought I'd try my hand at confections."

"Ah! And what do you have to confess?" He smirked and wrapped his arm around the meek girl, pulling her closer to him," Go on now, you can tell good ole' Owain!"

The brunette blushed immensely and wiggled her way out of his grasp," N-No! I-I mean, what I s-said was Confections," Seeing that he was still confused, she bashfully explained," Baked sweets. Little cakes and candies? I've bought flour, milk, eggs, honey, and a few random fruits. I want to see if I'm actually good at something."

Owain gawked," Wow, I didn't know you were such an amazing cook!"

"...Um, well, I haven't cooked anything yet...," She dipped her head down in shame," Actually, this is my first attempt. But maybe you might...try it? I mean...if you...want?"

The white haired boy couldn't understand why she was being so nervous around him. They practically grew up together, yet she didn't stutter around Lucina! Sure, he was much more intimidating than his cousin, but he didn't want to scare away his friends! Maybe if he spent time with the most jumpy of the group, people wouldn't be afraid to talk to him! There was also a plus in getting fed," I'd love to! My sword hand is always hungry for conventions!"

"Um, confections. It's pronounced...," She shook her head," N-never mind. Thanks, Owain. I'll try not to let you down."

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Frederick entered the kitchen, eyeing the table of children seated with slight annoyance. After having a (rather long and somewhat stressful) talk with his wife, the two had decided that it was about time to figure out what was going on in the kids' lives. After all, it didn't look like things were going to settle down anytime soon, and they needed to solve some problems before something bad happened.

He cleared his throat to announce his presence, alerting the group of teens that he was there," So, I think it's about time we discussed some things," Frederick could hear Gaius swear under his breath, but he decided to ignore it," I'm going to cut to the chase and ask what we've all been wondering; Gaius, who attacked you?"

The ginger tensed up immensely, his eyes nervously flicking to the other residents in the room," Uh...I'm not sure I want to talk about it with Bubbles trying to melt me with her death glare over there."

Frederick sent a brief, warning look towards Robin, which luckily turned out to be enough to make her back off," You should have thought about that before you came here to spend the night. Now, I'm going to ask you again: who did that to you?"

Gaius chewed on his lollypop anxiously, almost as if he was trying to figure a way out of it. After a few minutes of silence, he finally gave in," I guess you can say my adoptive parents don't really like me."

"Hold on, your parents did that to you?" Chrom cried," Why didn't you tell the authorities?"

"I dunno. Why didn't you tell them when your pop shot your-"

Robin's nostrils flared," Hey, he was only asking you a question! No need to be so snippy about it! No wonder your parents did that to you-"

"Stop talking this instant!" Frederick boomed, causing both parties of the argument to shrink back," Gaius, are you implying that your parents hurt you?"

The ginger shrugged, trying to hide how nervous he was," Well, yeah. Isn't it obvious?"

"I'd watch your attitude, Mr. Milis-"

"Frederick, please!" Sumia blurted. Once she realized that she had actually spoken up this time, she started to fumble with her words," Um, what I mean is that Gaius is obviously going through something hard right now, so...maybe you guys shouldn't be so tough on him?"

Robin gawked at her friend," Wait, you're on his side?!"

"I don't understand what the sides are in this situation, unless you're implying that you're on the people who hurt Gaius's side," Sumia snapped uncharacteristically," Or have you forgotten that you are just as guilty of being Grimleal as he is?"

The white haired girl's eyes widened, a sense of betrayal flooding into her. Why was she siding with Gaius? He was the one that had hurt her! Didn't she see that guys like that didn't just change with the flick of a switch," Sumia, I-"

"Just hear him out," The brunette tried to negotiate," If you won't do it for him, and least try for me...please?"

Although she didn't say anything, it was clear that Robin was willing to do so. Gaius, on the other hand, looked completely dumbstruck. He seemed to be just as shocked that Sumia was siding with him as Robin was. Frederick gave a thankful nod towards Sumia before picking up where he left off," So, as you stated before, it's "obvious" that you do not come from a safe household," Without warning, Frederick's features softened," That must be difficult. Are you okay?"

The Saxophonist looked as if the man had just smacked him," W-What?"

"It may not be common knowledge for you, but everyone accept Sumia at this table has a problem of sorts with their parents, myself included," Gaius double-checked the people sitting around him, surprised to find that Frederick was telling the truth. Lissa was rubbing her arm uncomfortably, Henry (even though he was still smiling) nodded in agreement, May kept her eyes focused on the ground, and while both Robin and Chrom seemed to be sad, both of them were looking at Lucina (whom was still sleeping) with incredibly guilty expressions on their faces," And because of this, you are welcome to stay until you can find other living arrangements-"

"Hey!" Henry spoke up," I have room for another person!"

"What?! Me? Room with you-"

Sumia stomped on Gaius's foot from underneath the table, affectively cutting him off," I think it's very nice of Henry to offer a place for you to stay."

The ginger scanned the room before bringing his voice down to a whisper," But he's insane!"

"You don't have another option," Sumia murmured back," You could count yourself lucky; other than being a tad bit weird, Henry's very friendly!"

"By friendly, do you mean creepy?"

"Gaius!"

"Fine, fine," The boy brought his voice back up to it's normal level and turned his attention back to Henry. Instead of making the snide remark everyone expected him to, he asked," Are you sure you want to do this? It's pretty clear to see that my parents aren't exactly the most merciful people, and housing me could be dangerous."

The white haired boy beamed," Oh goodie! It sounds like fun!"

Gaius's mouth was open so wide that his sucker almost fell out," Are you sure you're not mentally ill or something-gah!" He was stopped when a plastic apple bounced off of his head," Lissa? What was that for?"

"Be nice to my boyfriend!"

Chrom cringed," Great, I almost forgot that you started dating a psychopath-" Lissa chucked a plastic banana at him, aiming it so well that it smack into his nose," Ow, Lissa!"

Emmy giggled," Nice shot, mom!"

The blonde high fives her daughter," Thanks! I get it from years of practice. It comes with having a brother like Chrom-"

"Hold on a minute!" Gaius cried," Did May just call Lissa mom?!"

The room automatically fell silent with the family's eyes set on the duo in horror. Sumia looked just as shocked as the redhead was, revealing that she had also heard the slip up. Without warning, Emmy broke down," I'm so sorry, it was an accident! It's all my fault-"

Lissa smoothed her hair, trying to calm her frenzied daughter," Hey, don't be so hard on yourself; Any one of us could have done the same-"

"B-But you didn't! How can I mess up after a month of keeping the secret to myself?"

Sumia and Gaius gaped," Wait, are you guys saying that I didn't hear you wrong?!"

Chrom shared a look with Frederick, who nodded in approval," Okay, so here's the thing; a bunch of kids have time traveled from the future to try and save Ylisse from becoming an apocalyptic war zone. Lucina is my daughter, May, who's real name is Emmy, and Owain are Lissa's children, and Noire is obviously the older version of Frederick's daughter."

"So what I assume you're implying is that Robin is your wife in the future, right?" Sumia asked slowly.

Said girl's face flushed red, but Chrom was already used to the idea," Yup. Henry is Lissa's husband."

The brunette squealed and jumped up from her seat, taking Gaius's hands in hers. The high pitched noise made everyone cringe, and was even loud enough to wake Lucina up from her slumber. Sumia beamed," They got married! That means that Chrobin is officially and permanently cannon!"

"Woah, Stumbles, one pirate term at a time. I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that "shipping" has multiple meanings."

Lissa smiled smugly and placed her head in her hands," Now all we have to do is wait for you two get togeth-" Lucina's eyes widened in terror, and before her aunt could finish, she chucked a plastic apple at her head," OW! What was that for?"

The blue haired girl motioned zipping her mouth shut and sent an obviously fake grin towards the friends," Sorry about my aunt, she is kind of pirate crazy."

Gaius nodded in understanding," Yes, Sumia is quite the pirate herself-"

"If you're going to call me a shipper, please use the right term," The brunette murmured in embarrassment, protecting what little pride she had in the situation.

The subject at the table quickly shifted into re-explaining what shipping was, and while Lucina pretended to listen, she was secretly relieved. That had been a close one. It was already risky with the two knowing about the future children without Cynthia being present yet, so she was going to have to keep a close eye on them.

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Chrom wasn't extremely fond of snow, especially this early in October. Yes, snow meant the beginning of basketball season and usually signified Christmas, but his positivity at the moment wasn't at it's pique. After all, how could he be excited for the holidays when Emmeryn wouldn't be there?

He had to admit that his coping mechanism for her wasn't the best, but it was all he had. He was happy that he started dating Robin shortly after and met Lucina, but did that stuff have to happen after Emm's death? Chrom would've loved to see his sister's reaction when she discovered that he finally had a girlfriend that he wanted to keep for as long as he could and he wanted her to dote on his beautiful, brave daughter. He sniffled, brushing it off as a symptom of an oncoming cold. He couldn't live in the past now, not when there was so much to look after now.

Before he could wallow in self pity, Priam, the assistant coach, smacked him on the back," Nice job at practice today, Exalt! You're shaping up to be one heck of a captain!"

Chrom nodded in appreciation," Thanks! You're not doing to shabby yourself."

The blue haired man laughed heartily," I'm not sure if you're being sarcastic or not, but I'm going to take your word for it!" Priam scanned the parking lot, curious to why it was empty," Are you waiting for a ride, 'cause I can drop you off at your house if you want."

"I'm fine, I don't live very far," The teenager reassured," I'll see you tomorrow!" Chrom waved goodbye to his assistant coach and set off towards his house, watching the fluffy snowflakes land on the ground. While he wasn't a huge fan of snow, it was times of serenity like these that made him feel at one with the world-

A sneeze interrupted his thoughts, bringing his attention to a huddled form on the ground. If it was any other place, he would've walked right by, but he fact that this was the exact field where he found Robin made him uneasy. Chrom hesitantly kneeled down and brushed some of the snow off the the unconscious body, horrified to find Robin's sweatshirt hidden underneath," Robin?" Panic immediately set in as he yanked the hooded figure into a sitting position," Robin, what are you doing here? Are you okay? Robin, wake up!"

The figure groggily opened their eyes and yawned. It took them a little bit to realize that someone was trying to wake them up, bit once they did, they mumbled," Mmm? Who are you?"

Chrom blinked, surprised at how deep the voice was. It obviously wasn't Robin, but that didn't explain why he had the same sweatshirt as her. Did she have a long lost brother too? He frowned at the thought," I should be asking you the same. More importantly, why are you here? It's freezing out, and you could get hypothermia."

The boy blinked, slowly becoming more aware of his surroundings. Confusion automatically set in for him, and his movements became more frantic and worried," I...I don't know, frankly. I woke up just now, and...," he squeezed his eyes shut," I...Uh...I can't recall anything before that."

Chrom felt his stomach drop," This sounds way too familiar to be real."

"I...I think I remember my name?" The boy's eyes flickered open, revealing a pair the exact same shade of brown as Robin's,"...Morgan? Yes, that's it," A familiar smile spread across his cheeks," My name is Morgan."

"...I'm Chrom. And finding amnesiacs is apparently my special talent," Seeing the boy's puzzled expression, the blue haired teenager continued to explain," I met someone very dear to me in the same way. Her name is Robin," He added hesitantly.

"Robin?!" Morgan bounced up so quickly that his hood slipped off, showing off a full head of blue hair identical to Chrom's," I know her! She's my mother!"

Chrom felt as if someone had smacked him with a sack of bricks; did he just say mother?! Lucina didn't mention a brother! How was this possible? As much as he didn't want to believe it, the resemblance between him and the parents was uncanny," M-Mother?! Then you're our...You're my...," He quickly got to his feet and clamped his hands on the boy's shoulders," Morgan, stay calm and listen to me. Robin is my girlfriend, but in the future, she is my wife. Which means...you're likely my son who came here from the future."

Morgan stepped back, a mixture of shock and, for some reason, fear, in his eyes,"...W-What?! But I...The future?! Is...Is that why I have no memory?" He anxiously grabbed at some of his hair and lightly tugged it," But wait, I remember my mother. So why don't I remember you?"

Chrom felt all of his insecurities bubble up inside. If Morgan was his son, why didn't he remember him? He knew that he died in the future, but did he die so soon that Morgan didn't even get to meet him? Or did Robin have an affair-Chrom shook the very idea out of his head, knowing that she wouldn't do something like that. Still, that didn't explain how she could have another child, unless...Chrom winced, praying that what might've happened didn't," I-I don't know," He tried to think of something that Morgan could latch onto to reassure him that something bad didn't happen to Robin," D-Do you recall a sister named Lucina?"

Morgan frowned," No, nothing like that-Wait," He furrowed his eyebrow," I...I hear...something-gah!" Without warning, the blue haired boy fell onto his knees, clutching his head," I hear screaming...s-so much screaming!"

The drum major dropped onto the ground next to his (supposed) son, hating how much he looked like Robin after she met Validar," Woah, Morgan, don't stress yourself out."

"B-But I don't remember you yet," Morgan's body started to erupt in shivers, and his hands never left his hair," All I can remember is m-mother and screaming...everyone's screaming..."

"Shh, it's okay," Chrom soothed, taking the boy's head and placing it in his lap," I suppose it's a blessing that you at least remember your mother. Maybe something will come back once you've met with her and Lucina. Until then, you'd best come with me. Can you walk?"

The fourteen year old shuddered," I d-don't think so. My head is spinning."

"That's okay, you'll be alright. You're probably coming down with a cold, that's all. Here," Chrom carefully lifted his son onto his back, making sure that he was secure and comfortable," Hold on tight, we'll be home in a few minutes."

"A-Alright," Morgan smiled softly," Thanks dad."

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Once Morgan was safely snuggled into a pile of blankets in front of the fireplace with a hot cocoa in his hands, Chrom immediately dialed Robin," You need to come over now."

_"Why? I was just there-"_ She paused, sensing something was wrong," _Oh gods, what happened? Is Lucina okay? What about Lissa-_"

"No, everyone's okay," Chrom reassured," It's just that...well...you should just come over and see for yourself."

_"That doesn't make me feel any better!"_

"Just come! It's hard to explain over the phone."

_"...Fine. I'll be there in five minutes."_

Chrom hung up and slipped his phone back into his pocket before making his way back into the living room. He wished that someone could've been home at the time with him to help him, but Lissa and her family went out to see a movie, and since they liked the idea so much, Frederick and Tharja took Noire and Orie out for dinner. Lucina had said something about going out for a walk, so she would be back soon.

As he entered the living room, he heard Morgan talking to himself," Hmm... I wonder why I have no memory of my father...All my memories of Mother are so crisp and clear...I remember what an amazing scholar she was, all the time we studied together...," The boy sighed," But nothing at all about my father. It's one big blank."

Chrom leaned against the wall and spoke up," What are you talking about, Morgan?"

The boy perked up as soon as he noticed his dad was back in the room," Father! That's amazing! I was just thinking about you! Is this fate?!" It turned out to be more of a retort all question, because Morgan nodded enthusiastically," This is totally fate! Family-style fate!"

Even with all of the stress he he, the drum major managed to crack a smile," Heh, is that so?"

"Yup! Even without my memories, I know there's something between you and I. The more I think about it, the more I know it has to be true!" Morgan's enthusiasm faded slightly, replaced by unease," Er, but that reminds me...I was just wondering how I could have possibly forgotten you, Father. Do...Do you think maybe you could help me get those memories back? If you don't want to, you don't have to, of course."

Although he wasn't showing it, Chrom desperately wanted his son to remember him as well," I'd be happy to try. After all-"

"Yay! Thanks so much! I'll start preparing. Oh, I can't wait to get started-"

Before he could finish, the door flew open. Robin burst in and grabbed Chrom by his shoulders," I'm here," She panted, obviously fatigued from her trip across town," Now you have to tell me what's going on-"

"Mother!" Morgan sprung up from his nest of blankets and flung his arms around Robin, throwing the white haired girl completely off guard," I finally found you!"

The girl blinked, trying to process what had just happened," Did you just call me m-mother?"

Chrom rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly," Yes, he did. I found him in the same exact field as I found you when I was walking home from practice-"

"Hold on," Despite not knowing the child whatsoever, her motherly instincts took over," What were you doing out there? It's snowing! You could've caught a cold or gotten hypothermia!"

"Don't worry, I've been taking care of him," The blue haired teen assured," Anyways, I'd like you to meet Morgan. He has amnesia, just like you did, but he looks exactly like us."

Robin hesitantly looked down at her child, cautiously moving her hand throughout his blue locks. Chrom was right; the boy looked more like them than Lucina did," Wait a minute; if he's our son, why hasn't Lucina brought him up before?"

Morgan glanced up from his spot in his mother's chest and frowned," I can't really remember her, but...there are some things...something about a trumpet...and screams," He furrowed his eyebrow, pain becoming evident in his features," Oh no, the screaming! It's coming back!"

"What? What screaming?!"

"This happened the last time I brought up Lucina. Whatever happened, I don't think it ended well," Chrom explained gently," Just hold him until he feels better."

Robin sighed and held his head closer to her," We'll have to ask her about it when she gets back."

The family relocated so that Morgan was swaddled in blankets again between his parents on the couch. He distracted himself from whatever bad memory was haunting him by asking them an array of questions, ranging from favorite colors to how they fell in love (that answer lead to Morgan laughing his butt off while the couple blushed).

It was nearly half an hour later when Lucina finally came back. Tired from running over to the abandoned building to give Inigo a sleeping bag (it was really cold out, and since he still refused to reveal himself, providing him warmth was the only thing she could do), she almost went straight to bed. She would've, too, if she didn't hear his voice.

Lucina sped into the living room faster than humanly possible, her eyes set on the boy sitting between her parents. It was Morgan, there was no doubt of it. He looked older, but the fact that his voice and features were almost exactly the same confirmed both her hopes and her worst fears," M-Morgan?"

Her family turned her, surprised to find that she did recognize the boy," Lucina, why didn't you tell us you had a brother?"

How was this even possible?! She had seen it all with her own eyes! If he had pretended or set it up, he would've told her! They were the closest out of all of the children! She would've traded her life for his any day, just to make sure that he didn't have to deal with the consequences of her mistake," B-Because Morgan is d-dead."

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_It had been almost two years since their father died, and hiding wasn't becoming an option anymore. The YLH was doing the best they could, but the number of recruits were steadily decreasing, even after Inigo, Gerome, Anthony, and Nathan joined. Lucina had a bad feeling that if they didn't start fighting back, they'd end up just like their parents._

_That was why she was standing in an alley, ready for the plan to play into motion. The idea was to use Lucina as bait so that she could stall some of the Grimleal until the YLH came. Owain, Severa, And Kjelle were her backup, just in case the plan didn't go the way it was supposed to. They had tried it out a few times on weaker Grimleal members to lessen their numbers, and the plan had never failed them before. Today was the day they tried to take out the man that killed Emmeryn; Campari._

_Since they were not as trained in battle and younger than the others, Morgan, Emmy, Cynthia, Nah had to stay back with Noire, Laurent, and Brady. While the kids were hesitant to go through the plan the first time, they had eventually adapted themselves to the idea and began training themselves so that they could come along on later days._

_Morgan had a really bad feeling about it this time. He knew that Campari was not a man to mess with because of the way he had killed his aunt Lissa, but the older kids had ignored his protests. While he desperately wanted to be positive during dark times like these, he didn't like the idea of his big sister being bait for a man as cruel as he was," Please, at least let me come along!"_

_Lucina shook her head," No, it's too dangerous. I know you guys have been training, but this guy is going to be harder to get. I'd feel better if you stayed behind."_

_"And I'd feel better if you stayed behind," Morgan pleaded," If you're not going to listen to me, please let me come along. I'd feel better if I did."_

_"No way, you're too young," The blue haired girl answered," You're all I have left, and I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you."_

_Morgan clenched his fists, trying hard not to cry. Without warning, he yanked his older sister into the tightest hug he could produce," B-But we're stronger together. We're unstoppable! I know that if we work together, there's nothing we can't do!"_

_Lucina squeezed her eyes shut, trying hard not to cry herself. Honestly, she didn't like that she had to leave her little brother behind either, but she had no other choice," How about this? If you train really hard, we'll bring you along next time. I know that nothing bad will happen if I have you there."_

_Her little brother didn't seem to be very satisfied with her answer, but she didn't have time to dawdle. The four left almost immediately after she finished talking to him and initiated the plan. As usual, Lucina stood alone in the alley, pretending to be a bargaining chip to end Grimleal violence. Owain always his somewhere close in the alley, just in case one of their victims was short tempered and tried anything. Kjelle and Severa sat on the roof above with the only two guns the group owned, but they had been taught never to kill unless it was absolutely necessary._

_Campari arrived exactly when he said he would with two lackeys. Lucina nervously eyed that all three of them had guns, and knew that they were getting a sick sense of pleasure from seeing that she didn't have one. Campari stopped a few feet in front of her and smirked," So, looks like one of the Shepherds has finally gotten some sense knocked into them."_

_Lucina nodded shakily, reciting the words she had used over and over again to fool other Grimleal members," I'm sick of all of the death. I just want my friends to be able to grow up happy."_

_"A noble cause," The man chuckled," Now, do you have any last words?"_

_Her breathing stopped short; this wasn't part of the plan. They were supposed to take her back to their base so that their leader could do what they wanted with her! Her eyes suddenly became fixated on the gun he pulled out of its holster," H-Hold on, d-don't you want to hold m-me for ransom instead? I m-might prove to b-be more use to y-you-"_

_Campari clicked his tongue," Silly girl, we hardly have any use for you. Now, I hope that those were the last words you wanted, because you're not getting anymore."_

_Everything next happened too fast for Lucina to process; Campari shot his gun, but something pushed her out of the way and took the hit instead. Kjelle shot a warning from the ceiling, affectively scaring Campari's lackeys away, but the man himself had his focus set on another person; Owain. As soon as the white haired boy realized this, he took off running down the alley as fast as he could. Lucina stiffly sat up from where she had gotten knocked onto the ground and turned around to thank the person who had saved her life quickly so that she could help Owain, but when she saw who it was, she screamed._

_Morgan laid on the ground of the alley with his usually bright brown eyes dull and a bullet hole in his head. The blue haired girl frantically shook her little brother, yelling his name over and over again and telling him to wake up," Morgan! Morgan, no! Please! You have to wake up! You're all I have left! Morgan! MORGAN!"_

_Campari, on the other hand, was beyond pleased with himself. After disposing of the white haired Exalt child, he would move back to the girl and kill her. Grima would promote him after hearing of his success! He would have to hunt down those two cowards that abandoned him, but that was a task for another day," Stupid boy. It was dumb of you to underestimate me."_

_Owain had his back pressed against the wall and tears streaming down his face. This was the asshole who killed his mother, and now he killed his twelve year old cousin! He desperately wanted to send the damned Man into hell where he belonged, but in the panic, he had dropped his gun," You'll pay for what you've done!"_

_"You're such an idiotic-" Campari was cut off when he felt a gun press against the back of his head. Owain's eyes widened in a mix of horror and shock when he saw that the person threatening the villain was none other than Lucina._

_He had never seen the girl look so terrifying; tears were pouring down her cheeks and mixing with her brother's blood," We were always stronger together," She growled, her eyes glossed over with despair and fury," We were supposed to be unstoppable! I knew that if we worked together, there was nothing we can't do!" Without any warning, she shot Campari in the exact same spot he shot her brother, automatically killing him._

_Severa and Kjelle, who had rushed off the building as soon as possible, stopped dead when they saw the corpse," What the fuck have you done?" The olive haired girl sputtered._

_Lucina was shaking more than what seemed humanly possible, her eyes fixed straight ahead of her," I'm not going to let anyone else die."_

_Since the other two seemed to shocked or scared to answer, Severa yelled," What do you mean by that? Our parents wouldn't want-"_

_"OUR PARENTS ARE DEAD!" The blue haired girl cried," And now my baby brother is dead. There's nothing left to fight for accept avenging them. I hate them! I will kill every single Grimleal I see! THEY WILL ALL DIE! I WILL DESTORY THEM-"_

_Severa interviewed and forced her friend into a hug, hoping that the small form of compassion would stop Lucina from doing something she'd regret," Come on, Luci. Let's go home."_

_The blue haired girl was so shocked by the gesture that she lost all of her macho, reducing her down to an uncontrollable mess," B-But Morgan's dead."_

_"I know, but it's not safe here-"_

_"But Morgan..."_

_Severa took a deep breath and tightened her grip on her gun," Lucina, I'm only doing this for your own good. Please remember that when you wake up," The girl had no time to react, because the olive haired girl slammed the gun onto her head and knocked her out._

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Robin had no idea what to do when her daughter broke down. Lucina dropped to her knees immediately after she revealed that her brother was supposed to be dead and burst into tears, hugging herself for comfort. Much like his girlfriend, Chrom didn't know what to think about the situation. If Morgan was dead, how was he here now? Was this actually him?

Much to everyone's surprise, Morgan was the only one who took action; he stood up, taking some of the blankets with him, and carefully approached his sister. The blue haired boy gently wrapped his older sister in one of the blankets he had dragged with him and got down onto his knees, opening his arms for his sister to crawl into," I don't know what I'm doing here, but I...I think I remember you, because I really don't like to see you cry."

Lucina nearly launched herself into her younger brother's arms, sobbing like a small child and hugging him with all her might. She knew that something was wrong, and that this boy might not be her baby brother, but she needed to hold him again. It had been two long, lonely years, and to be able to even look at Morgan again felt like a dream," I promise I won't leave you again! I won't let anything happen to you! I love you so much, please don't leave me!" She cried.

Morgan chuckled and smoothed his older sister's hair as comfortingly as he could," Don't worry; I'm not going anywhere."

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**Yay, my blueberry baby Morgan is finally in the story!...and also sort of dead. Lucina's version of Morgan died protecting her (and he was FREAKING TWELVE I HATE MYSELF). Anyways, I'm looking forward to developing Chrom and Morgan's relationship, because the game doesn't go very deep into that. Also, Gaius and Henry are now roommates! That was one of those things that I didn't consider until I finished the last chapter and started writing this one. It'll be tons of fun! I figured out that in this fandom, you either like GaiusxSumia or hate it, and while that made me a little sad at first (I looked them up on tumblr and most of it was unforunately hate), but then I discovered that it was because people don't like how mean Gaius is in their supports. Then I realized that I gave him a reason to being a big meanie! So ha, my version is more realistic! Ha! Anyways, we got some Gaius and Robin angst there as well, because they strongly dislike each other (For now ;) ). Lucina's backstory is a sad one, but I like adding all the layers to explain why her character is so subdued and serious. Anyways, it's review time!**

**Golden-Lightning:**** I'm glad that you loved that in the last chapter, cause there was more of it in this chapter! Thank you, it makes me feel better when my readers say they prefer quality over getting it rushed. I'm still going to post every weekend to the best of my ability because I like having the deadlines to keep me from being lazy. If you're thinking about writing, I think you should! Writing stories helps with writing other stuff and helps you become more creative. Honestly, I wouldn't be the person I am today if I didn't write! I am so excited for Fire Emblem Fates too (as you already know). Haha, you read it all again? That's so flattering! I'm glad you like it that much! Don't worry, I wasn't pressured by anything in your last comment. I like getting reviews because they actually help me write more and give me ideas! Thank you for commenting!**

**Amy47101:**** Exactly! Writing evil puns are so freaking hard, I didn't even have any in this chapter :(. Gregor usually ends up married because he is more useful to me than units like (I apologize in advance) Vaike and Virion. That is definitely this version of Cherche. Fun fact; she was almost in this chapter, but I wanted it to remained focused on the Exalts. That means that the next chapter will definitely have her in it, though! My forever alone list in this story has most of the DLC characters and sadly, Vaike. I can't find anyone who will fit with him other than Miriel, but she's too old for him in the version. Ah well. I really like Cyrus/Silas right now, but I may end up with someone else because I originally wanted to be with Stahl for Awakening, but it was Chrom. Then, when I wanted to be with Henry, I ended up choosing Ricken. I'm pretty indecisive. Yay, I love that you enjoyed the angst on the bridge scene! Gaius's character has become a lot more deeper in this story, and I'm enjoying the heck out of it! Tharja probably hates all the kids that keep stowing away with them, so I find it hilarious that I just added another one to their household. Bwahaha! You're right, I was laughing so hard by the end of this post! Thanks for commenting!**

**Moonlights Glow:** **Welcome back, it's nice to hear from you again! Yikes, I'm sorry about your band teacher, that must be tough. We were lucky this year because our band teacher usually just buys drill, but this year he made it, so we all have a spot (unless someone drops out; then we'll have one empty spot)! We finished our first song, which is five minutes long and changes tempo about three times, and our second song is easy when you're not marching, because it's a lot of spinning and repetitiveness. Good luck, though! This story is making me love Gaius much more than I ever have before, and I love writing him! That bridge scene wasn't planned until the Friday before I was supposed to post the chapter, but boy, am I glad I chose it (that's okay, I like writing angsty stuff for my characters, as you can probably see in this chapter). I sort of hinted at why Frederick is understanding, and I'm not sure if I've said that his parents didn't approve of his marriage, but that's part of his story that will come up later in the story. Hehe, Robin hates Gaius and Chrom really dislikes that his little sister is dating a maniac. Inigo, along with Morgan, Lucina, Noire, and Nah, is also one of my favorite kids! If I were to marry a child, it would be him. Yes, now you see part of the reason I love OliviaxLon'qu so much! Their child is pretty much nothing like either of them! I don't blame you for not noticing her much, because she was originally supposed to be the Maiden, but then it changed when I got female Morgan and adored her. I doublechecked, I think it came up in the funeral scene...That's okay, I'm glad you got to review for this chapter!**

**Kit-Cat Star:**** Thank you, I also think that their supports are adorable! He always tried to make her smile and she's too serious to try. Hehe, Sumia and Gaius being okay again has sent Robin into a confused and semi-angry mindset. Thanks for reviewing! **

**AquaticSilver: ****Good, I'm glad you're cool with my slight schedule change! It's cool, I just like hearing from you guys whenever you have the time or want to! Yesssss, Inigo is in the story! WOOHOO! Thank you for commenting!**

**Not much to say here, other than the next chapter will be up next weekend. I'm pretty sure that another child will make an appearance, one that has to do with dragons (those are the two kids I'm trying to decide between). Thank you guys for reading, and I'll see you next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	26. Chapter 26 Emotions Exposed

**Hey guys! I have been so busy this week, I'm surprised that I'm posting the chapter this early. Unfortunately, this also means that this chapter is somewhat shorter than the past few have been. I'm not as packed next week, so hopefully it will pick back up there! Anywho, one couple gets together, one couple will get together, the Chon'sin crew is in the beginning, and finally, we have some children fluff in there! Well, enjoy the chapter!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Tanith yawned, wondering why on earth they were at school at 5:00 A.M. in the morning. The sun wasn't even up yet, so why were they? The purple haired girl huddled deeper into her coat and glanced over at Cobalt and Say'ri. The blue haired boy caught her eye and sent her a tired smile, remaining polite even with how tired he was. She knew that he was losing sleep because he stayed up late at night, fighting with his parents over the phone.

She broke her gaze away from the junior and asked the same question she had been using all morning," Say'ri, why are we at school so early?"

The dark haired girl had gone all out for whatever reason they were there, because she had brought a portable heater and a pair of binoculars," Hmm? Oh, mercy friends; I thought our intentions were clear. We are waiting for Walhart to arrive. Today is his first day, after all, and I want to see what his car looks like."

"No doubt it's red," She joked, causing Cobalt to chuckle along with her.

Say'ri sighed and lowered her binoculars from her eyes, sending an annoyed look at the duo," While that is amusing, this is no joking manner. We are dealing with a very dangerous man."

Tanith pouted," Come on, I was only trying to make things more lighthearted-"

"Now is not the time."

The younger girl sent a pleading look towards Cobalt, who only sank lower into his seat. While she did feel a stab of betrayal, she also couldn't blame him. Nobody wanted to be on Say'ri's bad side, herself included," I'm sorry, I was only trying to make you feel better."

The dark haired girl felt a stab of pain herself when she saw Tanith deflate. The sophomore was so hyper and positive that if you made her feel bad, it was the equivalent of kicking a puppy," No, you're right. I shouldn't be this hard on you."

"Guys."

"It's just that things like these take the upmost amount of focus," Say'ri reassured," This is an important mission-"

"Guys!"

Say'ri folded her arms and turned to Cobalt, who was frantically pointing behind her. She flickered her eyes over to Tanith, who had become extremely pale and was also focused on whatever the boy was pointing at. The dark haired girl swallowed her nerves and turned around, only to find Walhart himself standing before them," Miss Katani," He forced a smile," What are you doing here? Don't you attend Chon'sin High? What are you doing here?"

"I transferred," She answered, trying keep as cool of a head as she could," My aunt lives in the area, and I had to move in with her after Yen'fay disappeared," The last part of the sentence came out angrier than the rest, causing Walhart to narrow his eyes.

The man walked past Say'ri and approached the other two, eyeing Tanith even more suspiciously than he had done with her leader," And you two were also students of Chon'sin, were you not? Why move here?"

This was the man; the one who had kidnapped Yen'fay. Tanith had seen him countless times before, but now there was a past that identified itself with him. His dark red clothes stood out from the white blanket of snow that surrounded them, giving off the aura of the devil himself.

While those things were unnerving, something stood out above all the other factors that made her want to hurl. Tanith had learned early on that her sense of smell was far better than most people's, and while that usually came in handy, it only fueled her fear when she was standing so close to Walhart. She wasn't sure if she was imagining it or not, but he smelled faintly like blood.

Cobalt glanced over at the usually chatty girl, horrified to find that all she could do was shake furiously. He had to act fast if they didn't want to blow their cover. Without a second thought, he strutted over to Tanith and wrapped his arm securely around her, pressing a kiss on the top of her head," Do you still have your sore throat, sweetheart?" Tanith gaped at him with wide eyes, unaware of what he was doing. The only explanation he gave her was a pat on the head before he turned back to Walhart," I'm sorry, she got caught a cold a few days ago and is only recovering just now."

The new principal seemed unimpressed," Oh? Why don't you answer for her, then?"

"Well, Tanith moved out here so that she stay in a band," He lied," Her dad went comfortable with having her move out her alone, though, so I came along. We've been here for only a week so far, but we love it!"

Walhart crossed his arms and smirked," I'm sure that if you two enjoy living her, I'll fit right in. Now, what are you three doing out here so early in the morning?"

Cobalt didn't miss a beat," Bird watching. We have to come here before the other students scare them away. Say'ri and Tanith love it, so I figured I'd come along and have some quality time with my girlfriend before school started."

The white haired man glared at the teenager, only breaking away his gaze to check his watch," Don't come early again. We wouldn't want the police to mistake you three as troublemakers."

The trio waited until Walhart was in the building to relax. Say'ri released the breath she had been holding and patted Cobalt on the back," I see you're still a prime liar. Your quick thinking saved us."

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, unaware that his arm was still securely around Tanith," It's not the best skill to have, but it sure comes in handy in situations like this. Speaking of which," He turned to the purple haired girl," What happened? You froze up when he approached you."

"He smelled like blood," She answered shakily," I could barely pick it up, but it was there."

Say'ri felt as if the floor had fallen out from underneath her," B-Blood?" She cursed, running her hand through her long, ebony hair," Gods, please say it wasn't Yen'fay's."

"I have a good sense of smell, but even I can't identify blood types," Tanith murmured," I'm sorry I wasn't much help."

"No, if I had learned that he smelled of blood, I would've handled it worst than you had," Say'ri assured.

The sophomore cracked a small smile," Thanks for understanding. Oh, and Cobalt," She flipped around to face the blue haired boy," You really saved my bacon back there...Thank you for coming to help me," She got up on her toes and pecked his cheek, causing them to turn slightly pink.

"Uh, n-no problem."

Say'ri rolled her eyes fondly at her two friends," Come, we should find someplace to eat breakfast and warm up before school starts."

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Cherche knew it was a bad idea to give Minerva a bath at night. Honestly, it was only halfway through October and it was already almost below freezing! The rose haired girl woke up the next morning, only to find out that she had a cold and that it was snowing.

The girl huddled closer into her blankets and checked the clock for the billionth time, wondering when help would come. She had called Nowi, Virion, and even Olivia, but all of them were already on their way to school. So, out of desperation, Cherche called Kellam and asked if he could bring her some medicine. Thankfully, the brunette only lived a few houses away and was able to bring her salvation over.

Kellam quietly knocked on the door, poking his head in to make sure that she was awake," Good morning, Cherche! I brought the medicine."

She wanted to yank him into a hug and force him to comfort her, but she had a gut feeling that that would scare him away. Instead, she took the more timid approach and accepted his gift," Are you sure you didn't mind bringing this to me?"

"Of course not! Golly, Cherche, you're always so nice to me. I can't count the amount of times you helped me out," He grinned," It's the least I can do."

This was her chance to make a move! He seemed just as enthusiastic to be around her as she did when she was with him. She decided to take it as a sign," You know, Kellam, I've been thinking we should spend more time together. That is, if you wouldn't mind," She added bashfully.

Kellam blinked in surprise," You and me?"

"Maybe this fever is making me a bit dizzy and foolish...But I can't help thinking how nice it would be if we were a bit closer. Something about you and that adorable jacket and warm personality makes me feel...safe."

"I'd love to spend more time together!" He rubbed his hair nervously," Actually, I have something I want to give you."

Cherche felt her breath catch, but she brushed it off. She shouldn't get her hopes up like this, especially when she was so sick," Do you need more mending done?" She asked politely.

Kellam blushed," No, I, uh...," He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, calming himself for what he was about to do. In one quick motion, he pulled his jacket off of his shoulders and wrapped around Cherche," I want you to wear my jacket."

It took every fiber of her being not to wrap herself tighter in the jacket," But Kellam!"

"Did I do something wrong?" He back-peddled nervously," I know it's not the best gift ever, and we both obviously know what I'm implying with my jacket...but I can take it back if you want and we can pretend this never-"

"No!" Cherche's blushed at her outburst and tried to explain herself better," It's absolutely lovely! The jacket is not the issue. Kellam, you have to understand; I'm pretty odd. I name everything I own Minerva after my pet dog, I'm obsessed with sewing, and the closest thing to being in a relationship I've had was when I got suckered into going to the middle school dance with Virion. The only person I can be is myself."

Kellam smiled and sat down next to her on the bed, taking her petite hands in his calloused ones," I much prefer imperfections to the plastic people who don't know what they want. Since we've become close, I've begun to think that naming all of my prized processions would be a normal thing to do, and I started ripping some of the seams on my clothing just so that I could visit you! You're a beautiful, funny, amazing girl, and I'm an invisible man. I am more than willing to take you as you are, but are you willing to do the same with me?"

Cherche leaned over and kissed him on the cheek," Oh, Kellam. Of course I will."

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Cordelia had never felt worse than she did the week after...the incident.

How could she?! She had embarrassed herself in front of her friends, passed out when Sumia needed her, and she made it obvious to Chrom that she still had a crush on him. As much as she hated to admit it, she still had feelings for her friend's boyfriend. Whenever Cordelia managed to convince herself that she might not, she would melt at the sight of his crystal blue eyes or charming laugh-

No! No, no, no, no, no! Chrom was Robin's boyfriend! They made each other happier than Cordelia could even imagine was possible! She hated bottling up her feelings like this, but who was she going to talk to about it? Cordelia groaned and slammed her head against her locker, cursing the world for being so complicated.

Maybe practicing her cornet would make her feel better. Music had a tendency to make her forget her problems, and with state coming up, she needed all the prep she could get. Cordelia shut her locker and wandered to the band room, surprised to hear guitar music coming from inside," Stahl? Is that you?"

The olive haired boy looked up from his instrument and smiled, despite the last weekend's events. It was incredibly painful when he discovered she still had a crush on one of his best friends, and it was even more painful when he drove her home and she never brought it up. It should've been a sign to deter him from continuing to pursue her, but Stahl foolishly still had a thread of hope left. He figured that if today's conversation didn't take a good turn, he'd give her up," Hello, Cordelia! We haven't talked in awhile."

She bit her lip, thinking back to the embarrassment that Sunday had held," Ah...I've been busy. Are you practicing?"

"Yup. I've been trying to teach myself some of the basics so that I could learn a song or two."

Oh gods. She was supposed to help him with his guitar, but then the movie theater incident happened and she chickened out of talking to anyone that had attended," Stahl, I'm so sorry I haven't lived up to my promise of helping you. I was supposed to teach you-," She paused, thinking back to what he had been playing. Was he playing the song she had performed in middle school? She blinked,"...Err, that song. Yes, the song you're playing...right now. I recognize that," Cordelia suddenly lit up, pride enveloping her for an unknown reason," Goodness, Stahl, you're doing very well! I knew what you were playing! How did you learn that?"

Stahl shrugged and fiddled with the strings," I dunno. When I saw how passionate you were about a single note, I knew I had to practice," He chuckled bashfully," I'm still kind of murdering it, but I think it's getting better..."

The redhead sat herself next to him and tried to find a better way of saying it," I wouldn't say murder!...Maybe more like assault. Still, your progress is incredibly impressive. How do you motivate yourself?"

"Well, I knew I had to work twice as hard as you if I wanted to play that duet. So I've been practicing every moment of free time that I have," Uh oh, that sounded incredibly forward. Stahl's ears turned pink as he fumbled with his words," I mean, I...Uh...practice a lot to improve?"

Cordelia giggled at his embarrassment. While he was being super awkward, she found it endearing for some reason," Yes, that is quite dedicated. By the by, I've never heard that song played with the faster tempo you employed. I rather like it! Such a nice twist on an old classic."

"Y-Yeah, it's just an idea that struck me as I was studying the notes."

"How very astute of you."

Stahl laughed nervously, unsure if she was actually impressed or just being nice," I think it was more blind luck than astuteness, but thanks," He cleared his throat and changed the subject," So, what are you doing here after school? Usually it's just Ricken, Nowi, and I, but they're not here today for some reason."

The redhead picked up her cornet case," I'm going to practice for state."

"Practice? But you're already so good!" He complimented," I've heard you play; you have that music down pat. In fact, I think you're one of the best players in the band!"

This time, she was the one that was flustered," Oh, thanks, but I'm not the best. The only reason I'm good is because I practiced every free moment I could so that I could impress Ch-" She cut herself off, and whatever happiness she felt slipped away from her.

Stahl turned his gaze to the ground," Chrom, right? I know you like him."

"Everyone probably does now," She sniffled," It's not even worth it anymore. All I ever wanted was for him to at least give me a chance. I know that we're different, but I thought that maybe...maybe he might've returned my feelings," Cordelia felt her eyes water," Now I know that there's no chance of us getting together after Sunday night."

The olive haired boy rubbed his arm," I'm sorry. I know the feeling of pining after someone who may never return your feelings. I guess the only advice I can give you is that you deserve someone who will make you happy, not someone you think will make you happy."

Cordelia glanced over at the boy, a weird feeling engulfing her. As much as it surprised her to admit it, Stahl was right; Chrom didn't truly make her happy. Sure, they were friendly with each other and he was always nice to her, but didn't he act that way with everyone? He didn't treat her any differently than he treated his normal friends. Now that she thought about it, she hardly knew the real Chrom. How could she have had a crush on a boy without knowing who he was? Or was it just that; a silly schoolgirl crush.

The redhead placed her head in her hands, silently reprimanding herself for wasting so many years on a guy she barely knew. All this time, she could've found someone who actually made her happy, but the only person she felt could do that was...

She slowly pulled her head out of her hands and turned her gaze to Stahl, who was watching her with a concerned expression. Her eyes flickered from the guitar in his hands to his face, and suddenly, everything clicked into place; Stahl had a crush on her. He was trying so hard to impress her and make her feel special, and the only thing she had been doing was pushing him away.

Once again, Cordelia felt horrible about herself; how long had he liked her? Had she been unintentionally pushing him away this entire time? If she had gotten over Chrom like she promised a Robin she would, could she have had the opportunity to get into a relationship with Stahl? Worst of all, did he like her when she freaked out at the movie theater and passed out? Gods, she was the worst person in the entire world!

Stahl cautiously placed his hand on hers," Cordelia, are you okay? You don't have to listen to my advice if you don't want to-"

"No, no, no," The girl shook her head," You're right; Chrom doesn't make me happy."

The trombonist's eyes nearly popped out of his head in shock; did she just say what he thought she did? He was positive that she would've either ignored him or defended her feelings for Chrom, but she actually accepted his words? What did that mean? Was she over Chrom now? Was there a chance for him? Stahl swallowed nervously," R-Really?"

Cordelia bit her lip, trying to hold back her second train of thought. While her feelings for Chrom were fake, she knew there was something genuine that she was starting to feel for Stahl. Unfortunately, she had a feeling she was too late. Why did she have to unintentionally confess her feelings for Chrom in front of him? He probably gave up on her the minute he left the building. She didn't deserve to be his girlfriend," Yeah. Thank you for helping me realize this," She slowly stood up and turned to leave the room, but paused in front of the door," Uh, Stahl?"

He perked up, anticipation bubbling up inside of him," Yes?"

"I'm only discovering this now, but...," She took a deep breath," You're the one that makes me happy," With that, she bolted out of the room, blushing furiously. What had she just done? She probably made herself look like a fool. Cordelia groaned and decided that now was a good time to ask for dating advice. She pulled out her phone and dialed the only person she knew that was in a solid relationship; Robin,

Stahl, on the other hand, waited until she was out of sight to start smiling like an idiot. Had she just said what he thought she had? She told him that he made her happy! This was his chance! If he was going to ask Cordelia out, it had to be spectacular and romantic!

Unfortunately, those were two things he wasn't. Stahl looked at himself as a pretty normal person and an average guy. He was pretty good at cooking, but he didn't know what types of food she liked. He also had a knack for first aid, but that came back to the fact that she didn't need any medical aid.

That was how he spent the next two hours writing down ideas, crumpling them up, and throwing them to the other side of the room. Being romantic was harder than he thought. It was 5:00 when someone finally came to retrieve him. Chrom, who was already in his warm up clothes for basketball practice, eyed the room with surprise," Uh, Stahl? What are you doing? We have practice, remember?"

The olive haired boy grinned at his friend," I'm going to ask Cordelia out...I just don't know how I'm going to do it...yet."

"So she doesn't like me anymore?" That would be relieving, seeing that he was in a relationship with one of her close friends," How do you know?"

"I told her that she should be with someone who makes her happy, and right before she left, she said that I make her happy! Me!" Stahl deflated slightly," I just don't know how to ask her out...Hey, how did you ask Robin to become your girlfriend?"

Chrom rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly," Uh, it wasn't very romantic. You see, I went to the graveyard without telling anybody and Lissa freaked out. So she went and asked Robin where I went and accidentally gave her a heart attack. She apparently ran all over town looking for me, and when she finally found me...I guess we just talked about our feelings and I confessed."

"...That's not romantic at all."

"Well neither is...," He picked up one of his friend's crumpled sheets and read it out loud," Buying her a hot dog and telling her she is hot."

"What? Darn it, that was one of my better ideas," Stahl slammed his head against his guitar case," I'll never figure out a way to woo her!"

Chrom pointed to the case in his hands," Hold on, you play the guitar?"

"Yeah, I wanted to impress-" The trombonist's eyes widened in realization," I could play her a song! That's romantic! I'm still a bit rusty, but girls love it when you serenade them!" He jumped up in excitement," This will be perfect if I do it correctly! Chrom, do you still play the piano?"

The blue haired boy dropped his gaze onto his shoes; sure, he had played the piano a lot and was pretty good at it, but that was before Emmeryn had died. She was the one who was insistent on him learning so that he would be well rounded, and when the instructors were mean to him, she had taken it upon herself to teach him. Playing without her guidance made him feel weird, almost like he was abandoning her," I don't know, I'd be pretty rusty..."

"That's okay!" Stahl softened," Seriously, I need all the help I can get, and I'd feel a lot better if I had one of my best friends there to back me up."

Chrom pressed his lips together, knowing fully well that Stahl was trying to guilt him into this. Still, it wouldn't be that bad, and he knew that his friend would do the same for him in a heartbeat," Fi0ne. I'll do it, but it won't be a long song and you need to get other people to help you-"

"YES!" He fist pumped the air," I'll go ask Kellam and Gaius, and maybe Donnel will know how to play something...," The boy continued to blabber on, but allowed Chrom to drag him out of the room for practice.

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Owain felt bad for Morgan. He had discovered that his cousin had somehow been resurrected from the dead (?) and while he was just as positive as he was before his death, the white haired boy had a feeling that he would become lonely soon. It was also hard to see one of the former members of the Justice Cabal, a team of sorts that Cynthia, Morgan, and himself had formed to distract themselves from the gang violence, so lost.

That was why he not only offered to share his room with Morgan, but insisted that he let him help move him in. Their parents had agreed to let the two, since they were still new to the time period, skip school for the week so that they could get situated and enrolled. With the entire family either attending school or work, it was oddly empty in the house during the day. The only people present were Noire, Orie, and the two boys. Tharja would occasionally have a day off every now and then and the two parents were looking to see if they could get Noire enrolled in a community college, but it seemed that this would be the arrangement for the next week.

After a morning of moving some extra stuff into their room so that Morgan could have a bed and a few extra clothes, the kids dispersed to do their own thing. Noire had found a BB gun in the garage and wandered into the woods to do some shooting practice, which left the either Owain or Morgan to babysit Orie. Morgan was absolutely enamored with the infant and insisted that he should be the one to watch her until someone came to switch out with him.

As soon as he put Orie in her crib to take a nap, Owain strutted in," Ah ha! I've found you, Morgan!"

Morgan hushed him and lead the older boy out of the room, making sure that the door was closed before responding," What? What's wrong? Has something happened?"

"Yes, the second I saw you, something happened!" He pointed over-dramatically at him and declared," I knew you for my one and only rival!"

The blue haired boy blinked in confusion," Beg your pardon?"

Owain moved his hand and pressed it over his chest," My soul sensed your powerful aura, and at once realized our cosmic incongruity!"

"Wow, I...," After reuniting with Lucina last night, Morgan discovered that he must have had a lot of friends before he lost his memories. If he admitted that he had no idea what his cousin was saying, it might hurt his feelings,"...must not have noticed."

"You are the only one who could ever stand as my equal in battle. Now...," He picked two foam swords off of the ground and tossed him one," ANSWER MY CALL!"

"I'm still not sure what you're talking about, but you sound absolutely convinced," Morgan tilted the sword this way and that, pretending to inspect it coyly," And to be honest, I find myself...intrigued, even though it makes no sense. But I can't see how any self-respecting warrior could turn away such a fiery passion."

Owain smirked," Just so, my eternal ally-versary!"

Something suddenly clicked for him; while he still couldn't remember Owain or what he was talking about, Morgan felt like he had done something like this before," Yes, it's so clear to me now. So obvious! Truly, we were fated to clash as rivals!"

The white haired boy chuckled," The gauntlet is thrown! Let our extremely protracted duel to the death begin! But let us not, in our haste for glory, forget to observe the one sacred rule of combat!" He broke out of his eccentric speech and whispered,"...When I'm shouting a move name, you have to wait for me to finish. I shall extend the same courtesy to you, as a fellow brother of the Justice Cabal."

The Justice Cabal? There it was again; it sounded so familiar, but he wasn't sure how. Was he a part of this thing? Morgan smiled widely," I agree to your terms, mortal foe, though I doubt the enemies I've encountered would be quite so patient."

Owain crossed his arms huffily," I fear the scum you've faced are beggars and scrappers, their honor lost to blood madness! Now, let us begin... Have at you, sir!" He waved his foam sword around tauntingly, edging his cousin on to take the bait.

Luckily for him, Morgan was just as excited to play as Owain was," Face me if you dare!"

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**I freaking love Owain now. Writing him is so much fun, because he's so nice to all of his friends! He's also my nephew (and son when I'm a boy), so I'm a bit biased. It was surprisingly fun to write the Chon'sin Crew at the beginning, because I like to delve a bit deeper into their stories and characters. I'm still trying to decide whether or not to give Tanith a child from the future, so if you want me to, tell me in the reviews! Cherche and Kellam are a couple now, yay! That means that Gerome may be coming VERY soon! Stahldelia was cute to write in this chapter as well, because for once in my writing experience, Stahl wins! I'm not sure if I want his confession to be in the next chapter or the chapter after, but I will cross that bridge when I get there. Review time!**

**Golden-Lightning:**** Thank you! Good luck with your fanfiction, I wish you the best! Eventually, when most of the children are revealed to their parents, they will announce it to the main band members, but Sumia and Gaius were a special case because they are the main characters' best friends. They had to know sooner or later. Morgan is adorable, and I love him interacting with his parents. Haha, I understood you! Thank you for commenting!**

**Amy47101: ****Ditto. When in doubt, there is no CAWS for stress (that was so bad, I'm so sorry). Yay, they're a couple now! She gets to wear his jacket that she's obsessed with! Once again, I regret that I wasn't able to put that ship in this story (on that note, Vaike was almost a gym teacher instead of a student, but I scrapped that idea early on). That would be super cool, but it would also be a lot of work. I suggest that you take it one step at a time so you don't overwork yourself! I married Gaius in my most playthrough because of this fanfiction...hehe. Same, I NEED my Morgs. I looked up the cutscenes, but they were in a different language so I just gave up. Don't give in like I have(ish)! Thanks for commenting!  
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**MissShane12: ****I have this thing where I cringe if I write something I absolutely feel guilty doing (basically the entire movie chapter, because I was digging Gaius's grave. Then the bridge chapter, for obvious reasons. Finally, when I described Morgan's corpse, I nearly died. I'm a horrible person, basically). Thank you, I'm glad that it was affective in a good way! Thank you, I really enjoy writing Gaius! I feel like ever chapter I write with him, I'm adding more layers to his story! Thank you so much, you're awesome too! Thank you for the review!****  
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**I think I'm just going to blabber on a little bit here because I feel like it. As I've mentioned a lot above, I have a ton of characters I adore writing. Gaius is far up there, Owain is growing on me, even though I've rarely done anything with her, I enjoy writing Severa so far too (which is odd, because she is a character I don't care much for her in the game). Of course, I like Chrobin and their family too! Anyways, I'm being rushed to leave now, so I'll see you guys next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	27. Chapter 27 Dragons and Dancers

**Hey guys! I actually finished this chapter a day early and am writing this forward/afterward/editing yesterday (if that makes any sense)! I actually really liked writing this chapter because there are not one, but TWO new characters introduced! See if you can guess who they are before you start reading. Anyways, this chapter starts out incredibly lighthearted, but (excuse my phrasing) shit goes down once the first new character is introduced. There is a slight warning for violence in this chapter, but I figured that since we have all played a game about war, things should be fine. Okay, I think that's everything! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Love seemed to be everywhere lately, and it was beginning to annoy Vaike. With both Marching Band State and the State championships for the Ylisse Rams (their football team) coming around the corner, he didn't have time for women. Sure, his fellow football/band members were slowly getting sucked into their own love lives, but Teach wasn't going to fall for it! Just because Sully was getting chased by Virion and Gregor was flirting with Maribelle didn't excuse him to run off and start dating! At least he had Lon'qu, who was scared of women in general, to talk to (but he had a creeping suspicion that even the tsundere had a crush on someone).

Ironically, that left Vaike talking to Chrom of all people to get away from all the love-sick suckers who were too chicken to actually step up and admit their feelings. With Chrom, he found that the boy had hardly changed from when he had started dating Robin, which turned out to be completely refreshing. That, and the two were currently partners on a science project," Teach is sick of all the dating going around in band," He commented dully after he caught a glance of Virion flirting with Sully (for the umpteenth time).

Chrom smirked," It's funny that you tell this to me, seeing that I lead the band and am currently dating someone."

"You're different," Vaike responded nonchalantly," Teach just thinks that if they're going to waste all of their free time pining after some chick, they should grow a pair and ask 'er out on a date. That's what the Vaike would do!"

The blue haired boy froze," A date?"

"Yes, a date," The football player observed his rival, curious to why he was reacting the way he was," Why do you-" Suddenly, everything became clear to him. Vaike burst out laughing," You haven't asked 'er on a date yet, have ya?!"

"Shut up!" Chrom tried to hush him, only gaining more laughter from the boy," We've been really busy, and the thought hasn't really occurred to me..."

Vaike wiped a tear out from underneath his eye," Teach can't believe she's still dating you!"

The drum major grimaced and placed his chin in the crook of his palm," It's complicated, Vaike. You wouldn't understand."

The blonde suddenly turned serious and jutted his jaw out slightly, making sure to cross his arms so that his muscles jutted out semi-threateningly," What do ya mean Teach won't understand? Exactly what kind of relationship are you and Robin in?"

"No, no, no, it's not like that at all!" Chrom reassured," We've just got a lot of stuff going on in our lives-"

"Ask her out out on a date."

"-and-wait, what?"

Vaike leaned back in his chair," Ask her out out, or else."

The drum major calmly set down what he was working on and glared at the boy. Whether he liked to admit it or not, he was incredibly protective of his girlfriend, and even if he had known Vaike for years, he didn't like the sound of or else," Or else what?"

"Or else Teach will ask her out."

Chrom felt his nerves leave instantly, but he couldn't keep a coy laugh from his lips," You're threatening to ask _my girlfriend_ out? That could never happen."

"Are ya positive?" Vaike asked mockingly.

"Of course I'm positive! We have this thing called trust in our relationship!" The blue haired boy growled, becoming more and more annoyed by the second," I trust her not to cheat on me, and in return-"

"She trusts that you'll ask 'er out on a date."

"Exactly-No!" Chrom groaned and smacked his head on his desk, knowing deep down that the blonde boy was probably right," Okay, let's say that she does want to go out on an actual date with me. What should I do?"

Vaike shrugged," Teach doesn't know; she's your girlfriend after all."

It took all the self control that Chrom had to prevent him from punching the smart ass in the middle of class," Why the hell do you care so much, then?" He gritted through his teeth.

"Calm down, Cupcake. Teach just wants what's best for ya."

"Did you just call me _Cupcake_?" The bell rang, signifying the end of class," Ugh, Nevermind. I'll see you later, Vaike."

The blonde called after the drum major as he left the room," The Vaike meant what he said! If ya don't ask 'er out, Teach will!"

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Inigo was awaken that morning when he heard a voice yelling in the building. He immediately jumped onto his feet and unsheathed his pocket knife before slowly edging around the corner. As soon as his eyes fell onto a familiar brunette with sunglasses permanently on his face and a faithful black husky at his side, he re-pocketed his weapon and tutted," Gerome, leave the poor hobo alone."

The boy growled," No. Minerva picked up a scent, and...," His voice trailed off when he watched his beloved dog tackle Inigo and cover him in kisses," She picked up your scent instead of Nah's. That's just great."

Inigo, while ecstatic to see Minerva, quirked his eyebrow at the mention of the youngest Shepherd," What about Nah?"

"She has been accompanying me since we arrived from the future, but I awoke this morning to find her missing. While I don't really care about her, her pyrotechnic use in battle is useful."

The flirtatious boy rose his eyebrow with an unimpressed reaction," Geez, Gerome, you're just as cold as I remember you being. She's twelve years old and on her own, and all you care about are her battle skills?"

"All you care about is flirting with her."

"Hey, I draw the line at fourteen year olds, thank you very much!" Inigo huffed," We're going to need some help if Nah is really in trouble. I know that Lucina is-"

Gerome growled," I don't need help."

"What? Why not?"

"I work alone."

Inigo groaned, silently asking why it had to be him that lost Nah," Look, nobody's asking you to be a social butterfly, but we're your allies, you know? You could at least try."

"Allies? Do you expect me to rely on you in combat? To team up with you? Your only expertise is in flirting, and you still manage to fail spectacularly," Gerome spat," I'll take my chances alone."

The dancer clenched his jaw," Look, this isn't about me and it isn't about you; it's about finding Nah before she is harmed. You can either do that without backup and risk both your and Nah's life, or you can accept our help."

Gerome groaned and turned around to exit," Fine. Don't mess this up."

"Wouldn't dream of it!"

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Lucina watched the teacher drone on about the war legend, Commander Eliwood, and tried extremely hard to stay focused. Unfortunately, her mind kept wandering back to Morgan as it came up with numerous scenarios that all ended with her coming home to find her little brother dead. That lead to her chastising herself for thinking that way, which only added more stress to her life.

Of course, she couldn't let anyone know how much trauma this was causing her. She was the leader, after all. If anyone saw her as weak, they'd panic. The only people that had seen her break down were Severa, Inigo, Owain, and most recently, her parents. She wanted to keep it that way.

Lucina sighed and rubbed her temples, trying to turn her focus back onto the lecture. She flicked her eyes back up towards the board, but before she could indulge herself back in, something outside caught her eye. The bluenette slowly turned her head, dreading what it could be; Her jaw dropped when she saw Inigo waving furiously on the ground to get her attention and Gerome standing next to him with an annoyed expression on his face.

The girl quickly wrote a note to her parents and slipped it in her backpack before throwing her hand into the air," Excuse me, may I go to the bathroom?" When the teacher nodded, it took everything she had not to book it out of the classroom. Instead, she waited until she reached the hallway to bolt outside," Gerome! It's good to see you! I'm glad that you're okay."

Inigo crossed his arms huffily and rolled his eyes," I'm here too, you know."

"The only reason I'm here is because I lost Nah," Gerome informed," Once we've found her, I'm going to leave her with you and go on my own."

Lucina bit her lip and glanced over at Inigo, who was still pouting. Was there a reason that the only kids that wanted to stay back with her were her family? Did she do something wrong, or was there something she didn't know about? She tried to grasp for anything that would keep them with her," But your parents are a couple now-"

"They're not my parents."

"Well, my parents technically aren't either, but-"

"You're pretending that they are," Gerome spat," You're parents are dead, Lucina. These people that claim to love you are only pitying you. The truth you are ignoring is that you have forced them to stay in a relationship and forced them to put your needs before theirs. I wouldn't be surprised if they hate you-"

Without warning, Lucina swung her fist into his jaw, knocking him onto the ground with the amount of force she used," THAT'S A LIE!" She cried insecurely," They d-don't hate me!"

The brown haired boy rolled his eyes and dabbed his split lip with his hand," You're in denial."

Lucina growled and went in for another attack, but Inigo looped his arms around her and yanked her back," Stop it, you two! This isn't about us, remember? It's about saving Nah!" The two grumbled to themselves, neither willing to give up their arguments quite yet," We're wasting time!"

"Hey!" The three flipped around, only to find Lucina's teacher storming towards them," What are you doing out here?! Get back to class right now-"

In a matter of a few seconds, Inigo pushed Lucina towards Gerome and yelled," Find Nah!" Before turning around and blocking the teacher from following his two companions. The leather-clad boy didn't have to hear him twice, but Lucina hesitated. What would happen to Inigo if she left him behind? He had no identity in this time, and he couldn't ask for help from his parents because they were neither dating or ready to accept his existence. Sensing her confliction, Inigo sent her a confident smirk," You know I can handle myself. Now go find Nah before it's too late!"

The blue haired girl nodded and disappeared after Gerome, leaving Inigo to get dragged back into the building as the teacher scolded him for not only trying to skip class himself, but allowing the other two to leave as well. She seemed to be under the impression that all three were students instead of just Lucina.

The teacher threw him into the office, demanding that the secretary tell the principal to punish him. While he wasn't scared of what a random principal could do, the possibility that he might run into one of his parents was beginning to unnerve him. There was also the slim possibility that they would turn him in to the police, which would lead to a world of trouble.

"This student and his friends were caught trying to skip school today, and instead of coming back like good children, this boy here," The teacher pointed to him angrily while explaining her situation to the secretary," Prevented me from catching them! He should be suspended!"

Inigo sighed," I hate to break it to you, but I'm not a student."

"How interesting," A deep voice chuckled. The brunette turned in the direction of the voice, only to find a white haired man dressed completely in red," If you aren't a student, what were you doing on school property?"

There was something eerily familiar about this man, but Inigo couldn't quite put his finger on it. He decided that it wasn't best to answer, knowing that whatever he said could (and would) be turned against him.

The man leered at the sixteen year old before yanking him up by the back of his collar and forcing him into his office. He stopped at the door, turned back to the teacher, and asked," Were there any students of ours with him?"

"Lucina Exalt."

The principal nodded thoughtfully," Hmm, maybe her cousin will know something about her disappearance. Call him down immediately," With that, he shut the door and sat down at his desk, politely motioning for Inigo to take a seat," Now, let's start with formalities. I am the new principal here, Mr. Walhart."

Inigo's eyes bulged out of his head as soon as he heard the name; this was the man that hated all Grimleal. His father had told him stories about this man hunting down as many members as he could and trying to imprison them, no matter who they were.

Walhart smirked at the boy's discomfort," Quiet, aren't we? Don't worry; we'll have you talking in a matter of no time."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Inigo questioned uneasily.

A twisted grin appeared on his cheeks, but before he could answer, a knock rapped on the door," Ah, that must be Mr. Exalt. Come in."

Much to Inigo's horror, Chrom entered the room. He glanced at the younger boy in confusion," Good morning, Mr. Walhart. Is there a reason you called me in today?"

"Of course. I'll cut right to the chase; your cousin was caught skipping school with two boys. She managed to escape with one of them, but we caught one and are trying to find Lucina through him. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to be in the mood to answer questions. We're hoping that maybe you know who this young man is or where your cousin may have gone."

Chrom narrowed his eyes at Inigo and took the seat across from him, jumping headfirst into questioning him," Where is Lucina?"

The brunette clenched his fists, trying to relieve the nerves building up inside of him. He had to be careful answering, for he didn't want to reveal who he was to Walhart. Unfortunately, he also wanted to at least hint at who he was to Chrom so that he could help him," I'm not sure. All I know is that she is looking for Nah."

"Who is Nah?"

Inigo almost answered, nearly revealing that she was Ricken's child in front of Walhart. He had to be careful in responding," Who is Lucina?" He asked slowly, praying that Chrom would catch on quickly.

Unfortunately, he didn't seem to pick up on what the boy was asking," What do you mean?! You just said that you knew who she was! I won't ask again; who is Nah?!"

"If you tell me who Lucina is, I'll tell you who Nah is."

Walhart started to get up from his seat," Young man, we don't have time for your games-"

Much to their surprise, Chrom held up his hand to stop Walhart. If he was going to find his daughter, he was going to have to play along with the delinquent," She's my cousin."

Inigo released the breath he had been holding and held up his end of the bargain," I guess that makes Nah Ricken's cousin."

"Ricken has a-" The drum major paused, suddenly understanding what the boy was hinting at. Did that make him one of the future children? Was Lucina with another future child? He would assume so; she wasn't gullible enough to wander off with a stranger," Ah, now I know who you're talking about. I think she's on vacation," He was on a roll, so Chrom continued to question him in code," Now that I think about it, you look somewhat familiar. Are you related to anyone in the band? I feel like I've seen you cheering for us in the bleachers at football games."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm just Inigo. The only people I'm related to are dead policemen."

Dead policemen? Despite the casualty of his tone, the drum major knew that there was hidden meaning. He only knew two men that worked with the police, and those were Basilio and...Lon'qu. This had to be Lon'qu's child from the future! That's why he said that they were dead! Just in case, Chrom asked," Oh? Does that make you an orphan?"

Before Inigo could answer, Walhart stood up abruptly," I think that this conversation is starting to take an uninteresting turn. Thank you for your assistance, Mr. Exalt, you've been most helpful."

Chrom frowned as the principal tried to usher him out of the office," Wait, what are you going to do with him? He seems harmless-"

"Don't worry, I have everything handled. Good day," Walhart shoved the drum major out of his office and slammed the door shut, sliding the lock in place," Ah, I love the sound of a locked door. It brings a certain type of security; no one can come in, and no one can leave," Inigo felt his stomach churn. He didn't like the way this was going anymore. One of the only people that could've helped him in this situation had just been forced outside," All secrets stay inside too," Walhart continued, nonchalantly meandering over to his fireplace," How about we share a few secrets? I'd love to learn more about you."

"I have nothing to share," Inigo said carefully," I'm just a homeless boy who doesn't have the money to attend school."

"Ah, but that already reveals so much!" Walhart replied," That means that no one would miss you if something bad were to happen."

The sixteen year old gripped the armrests of the chair," What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"It means that I don't tolerate anyone that is part of the Grimleal," He slowly picked up a fire poker and began to examine it," Even young, homeless boys like yourselves."

Oh gods, Walhart thought that he was Grimleal. Inigo took back what he was thinking earlier; jail would be a luxury compared to what was in store for him now. If Walhart was intending to do what he thought he was, should he fight back? Inigo knew that everything he did, even if it was defending himself, would be turned against him. After all, no one would believe that a high school principal would threaten him. The dancer struggled to find an answer, but all he could do was stutter," I-I'm not a part of the Grimleal cult."

"Really?" Walhart gasped sarcastically," You see, I'm not a fool. I know that this area has been infected by your pathetic cult, and the fact that you were trying to kidnap an Exalt-"

"I would never hurt Lucina-"

Everything that happened next was a blur; Walhart swung the fire poker full force into the side of Inigo's head, knocking him onto the floor," I also don't tolerate liars," The sixteen year old ignored the pounding in his head and reached for the doorknob, hoping that if he at least giggled it, help would come. Just as he was about to grasp it, Walhart sent his foot into the boy's stomach and knocked him onto the ground again, causing his vision to blur hazardously. He felt something warm trickling down the side of his head, and even though he knew what it was, he shakily placed his hand in it, not surprised to find it covered in blood," I'd stay down this time if I were you," Walhart commented cooly.

Inigo glared at him the best he could without moving his head," You're...insane..," He muttered.

"I'm only trying to better the world," He replied," You see, one of the horrendous members in your group killed my wife. I didn't realize that she was gone until I came home from work that night. It was a morbid sight, one I'm sure you're used to seeing-"

"I'm...not...Grimleal!" He growled, fighting to stay conscious. Who knows what would happen to him if he blacked out? That would mean that Walhart would have complete control over him, and that was the equivalent of a death sentence.

Walhart seemed unimpressed with his attempt to defend himself," If you don't worship Grima, then why have you been sneaking around and avoiding answering my questions?" He pulled what looked like an old fashioned seal press and stabbed his poker through the top of it. Once it was skewered, he casually let it start to heat up in the fire," Of course, it's a bit too late for cooperation now, isn't it?" Inigo gulped and watched as the principal pulled the sparking seal maker out of the fire," How about I strike you a deal?"

Inigo didn't get time to react, because Walhart clamped his boot over the boy's mouth," I'll let you live, but you need to promise to show your fellow vermin this gift from me," Suddenly, Walhart pressed the burning metal into the skin on his chest, using it as some sort of a crude brand. A muffled scream of pain erupted from Inigo's lips, only to have it's sound blocked out by the bottom of Walhart's shoe. After what seemed like an eternity of pain, the twisted man pulled the crude torture device off of the boy," You should count yourself lucky."

The brunette was unable to respond at this point. There were too many nerves in his body yelping in agony for him to focus on anything other than the ceiling. Stay conscious, he pleaded with himself. He just had to stay awake long enough for that sick man to leave, then he could conk out.

The principal spat on Inigo before stepping over his body to the door as if he were nothing but a doormat," I'll be back to drop your body off outside in a few hours. As far as we are concerned, this never happened."

He clenched his jaw," Or what? Once you've...let me out of your...sight, it'll be hard for you...to track me down...again."

"I have my ways. After all, your friend is a student here, is she not?" Walhart unlocked the door," We wouldn't want Lucina to have to endure what you have today, would we?"

He felt as if he had been kicked in the gut again. No, no, no, not Lucina. Why did she have to be the one that he was seen with? Inigo glared at the man," You're a sick bastard."

Walhart smirked," Try not to get any blood on the carpet," With that, he left the room and locked it behind him. Inigo could vaguely hear him explain some excuse to his secretary, but the moment the door closed, his vision blackened and he passed out.

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Neither Lucina or Gerome spoke to each other as they followed Minerva. The blue haired girl had put her hood up, just in case the school tried to send a truancy officer after them. It was times like these that she wished she had her sunglasses back.

Her sunglasses. The one article on her being that could hide her identity. The one thing that had kept her hidden for the past two months. The thing that Gerome had given her before she left.

Lucina sighed, guilt flooding inside of her. First she left Inigo behind, and now she realized how impatient she had been with Gerome. How was she supposed to be their leader if she overreacted at the first insult she heard? Her eyes fell on the ground in shame," Gerome?"

He didn't respond at first, leaving a dense silence between the two. Just as she was about to give up and leave him alone, he spoke up," What do you want?"

Lucina rubbed her arms, unconsciously letting one of her hands fall onto her sleeve. A small smile formed on her lips when she thought of her mother and Noire's nervous habit," Well, nothing, really. I just came to say that I'm sorry about earlier," When the awkward silence formed between them again, she continued on," I've been thinking it over, and I realized that I also wanted to thank you."

For the first time since their fight, he responded quickly," For what?"

"You gave me your sunglasses, remember? You said there might come a time where I would need to conceal my identity...who would've known that it'd come in handy so soon?"

From the corner of her eye, she watched Gerome nod," Ah. Yes. I remember."

Lucina fiddled with her hands, elated for some reason that she was getting to have a normal conversation with the silent boy," Well, it was very nice of you because the sunglasses proved most useful. So again, thank you, and I'm sorry for overreacting earlier."

The boy rubbed his eyes from underneath his sunglasses, making Lucina question the way he had been acting lately. Now that she thought about it, he would've been able to predict her attack and in any other circumstance, he would've blocked it. Was he tired? Exactly how long had he been looking for Nah? She was pulled from her thoughts when he muttered," Think nothing of it. I shouldn't have been as harsh as I was. I'm just...distracted."

"Is it because you're trying to hide how worried you are about Nah?"

"Is the reason you joined the YLH to distract yourself from Morgan's death?" He avoided the question, unknowingly proving Lucina's point.

Still, he had brought up something that she probably should've shared with both him and Inigo as soon as she reunited with them," Actually, there's something I have to say about Morgan-"

She was interrupted by a scream.

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Nah rubbed her backside sorely, torn between giving up and trying to navigate her way out of the blasted sewer system. While she was sure that someone would eventually find her, she didn't want to wait long enough to find out. After all, one didn't just fall asleep in a safe place and wake up completely lost and under the city. There had to be ties to the Grimleal capturing her, and she was almost positive that she was a form of bait to lure her friends in.

That was why she had spent the entire morning wandering aimlessly around the labyrinth of pipes and awful smelling sewage. Nah had just about given up on finding a way out when she finally ran into a circular sewer grate large enough for her to climb out of. With the newfound source of hope just within her reach, she had climbed the ladder and tried to pry it open, only to find that the hunk of metal was much heavier than she had anticipated. In her futile attempts to push it open, she had accidentally lost her footing and fallen onto her butt. She groaned and let her head rest against the wall, deciding to give herself a small pep talk," All right, Nah...You can do this. You're strong! You're brave! You...," Before she could finish, she felt something scamper over her boot," EEEEEEK! WAAAH! GET ME OUT OF-" She was yanked from her hysterics when she saw the cause of her dismay; a rat," Ha ha...haaaaaa...Just a rat. Nothing to be afraid of...," She didn't have time to calm herself before her eyes fell on a dark shape much bigger than the vermin hiding in the shadows," What the heck is that?!"

"You're smarter than I expected," An eery voice purred," Unfortunately for you, I'm not allowed to let you leave. I guess we'll just have to find a..._fun_ way to pass the time-"

Nah, being the twelve year old she was, did not handle the situation calmly; she screamed and chucked the poor rat at the man's face before shooting onto her feet and scampering in the other direction. Once she was sure she was far away from the horrible person, she doubled over and tried to catch her breath," Wait a minute, this is silly. I have my pyrotechnics...What am I worried about?" She laughed nervously and straightened up," Now how do I get out of this wretched place?"

"Nah?!" A welcomingly familiar voice cried," Is that you down there?!"

Said girl glanced up at the small, skinnier grate to find Lucina and Gerome looking down at her from it," Oh thank gods! You guys wouldn't believe the morning I've had!"

"Can we skip the formalities and find a way to get you out of there?" Gerome grumbled," I don't like being out during the day and I need to catch up on sleep."

Nah put her hands on her hips," Oh, have you been up all night looking for little ole' me? I knew you weren't all gruff like you pretend to be-" The boy growled, warning her to change the subject fast," Heh, okay. Well, I was just at a sewer grate large enough for me to crawl through, but there was a creep guarding it. I bet he's the one that brought me down here."

Lucina smiled encouragingly," Don't worry, we can help you defeat him-"

"No, I don't want to risk it!"

"Risk what?" The brunette asked.

"If this guy had kidnapped me for the sake of wanting just me, he wouldn't have let me go unscathed for this long. I think he brought me down here to lure you guys in."

The older girl frowned," Are you saying that he might know who we are? How is that even possible?! We came from the future!"

Nah sighed," Well, we did leave the time machine in the future. There's no saying that Miss Naga was able to protect it from the Grimleal."

Gerome swore under his breath before pressing on," This is a subject we can discuss later, but right now, getting you out is our priority. If you don't want us to come down, how are we supposed to get you past the man that kidnapped you?"

"...I can fight him."

"That's too dangerous. You're not old enough-"

"I'm strong!" Nah argued," I know I can handle myself, even if it is just long enough to knock him out so that you guys can pull the sewer grate off and help me out," Even though she was scared, she knew that this was the only way to get out without getting one of her friends hurt, so she didn't give them the option to disagree," I'll meet you guys down there!"

"Nah, wait-" The auburn haired girl ignored the older kids protests and zoomed back up the way she had run from. Luckily, it didn't take her that long to relocate where the exit was, and much like she had anticipated, the man was still there.

He smirked, giving her the impression that there was something twisted about this man," Come back to play?"

"I-I'm not scared of you," She murmured, partially telling him and partially assuring herself.

The man laughed," What was that, darling?" He mocked," I couldn't hear you."

She flicked the switch, igniting the flames from her gloves with determination," I'm not scared of you!" In one fluid movement, she used the nozzle at the top of her glove and sprayed a shot of gas onto the man before lighting his shirt on fire. She figured that since he was in the sewer and could put himself out, she wouldn't need to worry about him dying.

The man screamed in agony and immediately dropped onto the ground, trying desperately to fan the flames out. Nah took this as her escape route and hopped over him onto the ladder. Much to her relief, the two Shepherds had pried the grate off of the road and were offering her their hands to help her up. Just as she was about to climb out of the sewer, the man grabbed her leg," You're not getting away that easy!"

Nah reacted quickly and kicked him with her free foot, effectively knocking him into a crevasse of sewage. Unfortunately, she also lost her footing in the process. She squeezed her eyes shut and braced for the rough landing that she had experienced earlier, but instead, she felt someone grab her wrist," Gerome!"

The boy gritted his teeth," You're heavier than you look," He grumbled, using one hand to grip the edge and keep him from falling in himself. Lucina grabbed Nah's other hand and helped him haul her outside, slamming the grate shut behind her," You're more trouble than you look-oomph!" Gerome didn't get to finish, because Nah threw her arms around him and pulled him into a suffocating hug," Let...me...go...before...you...kill...me..." He gasped.

"Oops, sorry!" The auburn haired girl released him and watched as he stood up and turned to leave," Wait, where are you going?"

"You're safer with Lucina," It was more of a demand than a comment," I will come back when the time is right."

Nah jumped to her feet and went to follow him, but the older girl placed a hand on her shoulder, keeping her back," What are you doing?! We can't just let him leave!"

"I think that's what he wants right now," Lucina responded softly. Much like Nah, she didn't want the leather-obsessed boy to leave, but she had a feeling that she knew why he was going. After losing the twelve year old girl, he probably didn't trust himself to look after her for any longer. While that was depressing, it also meant that he trusted Lucina to look after her, and that was exactly what she was going to do," Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

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When Inigo woke up, the moon was out and the cool weather of the night surrounded him. It took him a few minutes to steady his breathing and remember what had happened. How long had he been knocked out? Had the others found Nah? Where was he?

Before he could fully process all of his thoughts, something licked his face," Gah, what was that?!"

"You truly are an idiot," The voice that woken him up that morning smirked," Did some woman hate you that much?"

"You and I both know that the ladies love me. They just like to keep it a secret," Inigo tried to sit up, but a wave of pain rolled through his stomach and head," Ergh, I won't try and do that again," He huffed as he carefully lied himself down again," Would you be a pal and carry me somewhere that isn't here, Gerome?"

The brunette narrowed his eyes, but in the end, he obliged," Who did this to you?" He questioned as he repositioned his ally on his back.

"I feel like you're going to hate me for saying this, but I'm not allowed to tell," The dancer sighed," Though I would avoid going to school here. Their principal has a sick sense of discipline."

"Damn, I didn't think that Walhart was here yet," Gerome grumbled, automatically picking up on what the boy was implying," I'd heard stories about how ruthless he was, but I never fully understood them until now."

"Heh, me neither," Inigo tilted his head, curious to where the silent boy was taking him," Where are we going anyways?"

"We're going to find the only one of us that can hope to patch you up," Gerome glanced down at Minerva and commanded," Find Brady."

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**Hehehe, I wasn't exaggerating when I warned violence in this chapter. I guess I should start off from the beginning; I literally didn't plan to add Vaike in this chapter until I started writing. I don't even know how I decided it, I just kept it because I haven't put him in much since the beginning. There was a bit of cute frenemy fluff between him and Chrom, so I think that it was a plus! Okay, time to get into the interesting stuff; Gerome and Nah are introduced! My lovely dragon babies! I've also just come to the conclusion that writing all of the future children is fun, because they have so many layers that I have yet to discover! It's really fun! If you didn't pick up on it, Gerome was super snippy because he was panicking about losing Nah. After reading some of his supports, I discovered that he's a huge softy when it comes to Lucina, and Nah is like his little sister. IT IS SO CUTE! Minerva is also officially a black husky, because the type of dog resembles a wyvern the most (if that makes any sense). Walhart is a bit different in this version because he is somewhat insane and revenge driven (that one line when he says _I love the sound of a locked door_ is one of my favorite lines I've written, because it changes the mood so drastically). Poor Inigo had to be at the opposite end of Walhart's fury. I also really liked Inigo's interaction with Chrom because both of them had to be so careful about what they were saying to make it sound as casual as possible (if you can't tell, I REALLY loved writing this chapter)! Nah has fire gloves, which were inspired by _The Keys of Fire_ by LoneStorm (It's a Fairy Tail Fanfic that this author recently(ish) finished, and I highly recommend it), because I accidentally made her a mage on my first playthrough (which I'm heavily basing this off of) and she's also a dragon. Wow, this got long...Okay, finally, Gerome softened up with Inigo at the end because deep down, they are friends (and there might be a YLH backstory in there somewhere) deep down. Now it's review time!**

**Golden-Lightning:**** Yay, thank you! I'm glad you liked it! I put it in a little bit during their first reaction, but it might be a little bit because of what happened in today's chapter (their entire support is adorable, though! Gah, I kind of love them both)! Gah, I don't know what I'm going to do, because I don't think I'm going to give Tiki a child anymore either. You see, I usually ship Tiki with Say'ri and it's adorable and their adopted baby would be precious, but I have no idea how to fit it in this story (much like Vaike and Miriel). It's okay, I'm glad that you're still thinking about it and trying to help! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Amy47101:** **Haha, I love puns so much! Gerome was in this chapter a lot more than I thought he originally would be. Literally, he was in every section other than the beginning with Chrom and Vaike. What I loved about writing him was that with each section, it was like another layer was added to his character (I really love fleshing out the characters)! I know, and I totally would've gone for it, but that'd mean he'd be in the story even less than he already is (which depresses me). Priam, in my mind, is like the older brother that Chrom never had (in this story, though). So we all know that there will be tons of teasing when he discovers he has a girlfriend. As always, good luck with your story! I actually got around to reading more of your Awakening story, and I'm not sure if this is going to be a real thing or not, but I kind of ship Ella and Demyan X). I love them so much, but I've discovered that I just love all of the kids. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Everything turned out to be long today. Much like last week, there are many ways next week's chapter could go. I'm most likely going to put some focus on Stahl and...stuff. We'll see. The good thing is that I have a lot of ideas, so I won't have a writers block! I'll just have some decisions to make. I hope you enjoyed this week's chapter, and I'll see you guys next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	28. Chapter 28 Even Though

**Happy Saturday guys! So school is starting back up for me on Tuesday, which doesn't really mean much for this story other than the fact that I am writing on my original Ipad again. I also couldn't sleep for some reason last night, so I wrote until midnight and then spent another four hours just doing nothing. It was pretty weird, and I woke up at 1:00! Haha. Anyways, this chapter is super cheesy at the beginning, so bear with me. I did not write the song in here because while I can write an essay in under twenthy minutes, I'm horrible at lyrics. If you want to look the version of the song I used up, type in _Even Though Darren Criss _and pick on the video with lyrics on it. Two new characters are introduced (pretty briefly). Welp, I think that's all! Enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening or _Even Though._**

* * *

Cordelia knew that there was something up the moment she walked into school. It started with people (mainly boys from band) glancing at her more than often and whispering as soon as she passed. At first it was infuriating, but her anger diminished slightly when she discovered that neither of her friends understood the odd behavior either," Really, it makes no sense at all!" Cordelia complained during lunch," Do you think word got out of me making a fool out of myself in front of Chrom?"

Sumia shook her head," I don't think anyone who was there would spread rumors about it."

"Gaius might," Robin commented.

"He has no reason to!" The brunette defended," Stop picking on him, he hasn't done anything to you!"

"That's the thing, though; he's done everything to hurt you, and you're still defending him!" The drum major sighed," I'm just trying to look out for you."

"I'm not a child, Robin-"

"Would you two stop fighting already?" Cordelia groaned," Sumia, you should understand that Robin only wants what's best for you. Robin, Sumia is her own person and I'm sure that she knows Gaius well enough to trust him. Back me up, Anna."

The redhead looked up from counting what leftover lunch money, making it obvious that she wasn't listening to their conversation," Hmmm?"

"Oh you're no help," The cornetist glanced around the table, poised to ask someone else for backup, only noticing then that none of the usual boys that sat with them were present that day. The only other people at their table were Olivia, who was too shy to speak up, Tiki, who was asleep, and Panne, who didn't care," Hey, where are the boys?" She immediately jumped to a conclusion," Oh no, they did find out!"

"Uh, all the boys that sit at our table already know about what happened. They were all there, remember?" Sumia pointed out," It's probably something else."

"You guys are taking the wrong approach to this," Robin turned to the other ladies at their table," One of you should ask your guy-friends about what's going on."

Anna burst out laughing," Ha! You mean I should ask Hewitt?! Ha ha! You want me to try and talk to him about this? He doesn't talk in general! I doubt he knows or cares much about whatever fiasco Cordelia has gotten herself into," She poked her sleeping friend with a pen," Hey, wake up! We're trying to find out why all the boys are gossiping about Cordelia."

The scarlet haired girl nodded eagerly," Yeah, you could help! After all, you're super pretty! I bet you have all the boys wrapped around your finger!"

Anna broke out into an even deeper fit of laughter, this time accompanied by Tiki's giggles," Oh my, this is an odd misunderstanding," She shrugged," I'm not interested in boys."

Cordelia's eyes widened in surprise, picking up on what she was implying," Wait, really? Why haven't you told any of us?"

"I didn't think it was a big deal."

The girl nodded slowly before groaning and slamming her head in defeat onto the table," Ugh! How on earth am I supposed to find out what's going on now?! Panne? Olivia? You two are my last hopes!"

Panne didn't even look up from her lunch," I don't care enough to try."

Olivia shook her head wildly, trying to hide the deep blush on her cheeks," No, no, no, no, no, I could NEVER! I d-don't like it when people s-stare at me, and I just KNOW t-they'll laugh if I t-try and ask them a-about it! I'm so s-sorry!"

"It's fine, I didn't expect much anyways," Cordelia propped her chin in her hand," Looks like we'll just have to wait and see what-"

"Excuse me, Cordelia?" The girls turned to find Ricken, who looked extremely proud of himself for some reason," Mr. Warry wants to talk to you about the upcoming concert band season to see if you want any solos."

The girl smiled politely," Oh, okay! Tell him that I'll come as soon as I'm done eating-"

"No, you have to come now!" Ricken blurted," I mean, what I meant was that he's going into a meeting very soon and doesn't know another time he'll be able to this."

Cordelia blinked, a bit surprised by his sudden outburst," I will be there in five minutes tops. Don't worry, I won't be long-"

"PLAN B!" He suddenly yelled," WE NEED TO INITIATE PLAN B!"

"Plan...what?"

Before she could further question him, Vaike appeared out of nowhere," Plan B is set into motion!" Without warning, he grabbed Cordelia and hoisted her onto his shoulder, ignoring the amount of people staring at them," Now let's go!"

"Wait, what?! Put me down, Vaike! I mean it! If you really want me to leave that badly, I'll-Oh gods, people are staring now!" The redhead buried her head in her hands," This is so embarrassing!"

Robin and Sumia exchanged curious glances before following their friend and her "kidnappers" out of the lunchroom. While the entire scene was hilarious, they decided to follow their friend just in case the situation got worse than it already was.

It wasn't very shocking when they ended up in the band room, but it was surprising to find Stahl, Chrom, Kellam, Gaius, and Henry all with an instrument at their side. Stahl looked mortified when he realized the fashion they had arrived in," What are you doing?!" He blubbered," I didn't say that-she probably didn't-Oh gods, I'm so sorry-Just put her down, Vaike."

"Teach is on it," He answered, lowering the scarlet haired girl onto a chair," Good luck."

Robin rose her eye at the football player, but her focus was directed back to Cordelia when she pointed at the instrument at Stahl's side and said," Oh, I think I get it now; You want to practice, right?"

Stahl turned bright red and ran his hand through his hair nervously," Uh, I actually...uh...wrote you a song-I mean, Chrom wrote all the actual music, but I wrote the lyrics-Oh, and Gaius volunteered to keep the beat with the tambourine, and since he and Henry are roommates now, Henry asked if he could do some backup instrumentals on his electric guitar-and now I'm rambling-Oh, I almost forgot about Kellam! Kellam is here for moral support and he helped me get a lot of confidence-Chrom is also playing the piano-Oh gods, where am I going with this?"

Gaius rolled his eyes," Just start the song before you embarrass yourself."

"O-Oh, okay," He cleared his throat and prepped to play," This is for you, Cordelia."

Stahl took a deep breath and started strumming his guitar for a few measures until he started to sing," _Even though I was blind before,_

_I've realized there is so much more,_

_and it was always deep down in the core of me, I know it now._

_Even though it seems to much to take,_

_There's a feeling I can't seem to shake,_

_I feel like, I am reading the signs, 'cause you know that I'm coming around."_

Cordelia slowly brought her hand up to her mouth in shock. She had no idea that Stahl's voice was as beautiful as it was. Even with that, she couldn't help but pay attention to the lyrics. Was this song dedicated to her? She glanced back at Sumia, who was hopping up and down in excitement, and Robin, who gave her a thumbs up. Stahl opened his mouth and started singing the next verse," _I thought I wanted someone perfect as can be, When what I needed was the one who was perfect for me_."

By this point, Chrom and Gaius began to sing Oohs while Stahl continued singing," _Even though it used to seem so wrong,_

_I've take you for granted far to long,_

_We're falling right into the denouement,_

_And now I'm breaking ground."_

Kellam jumped in to harmonize with Stahl," _Even though I've felt it from the start,_

_It's only now we're beating with one heart,_

_I'm sure that now is the time_

_'Cause you know that I'm..."_

Stahl strummed a few light cords before Henry took over with his electric guitar and broke into an odd, but well played guitar solo that followed the melody of the chorus. The white haired boy looked way past elated to be able to play it, so even though it didn't really match the theme, no one minded.

As soon as his solo was over, Stahl and Kellam started singing again," _The sun is starting to shine,_

_'Cause you know that I'm..._

Kellam stopped harmonizing at this point, leaving his best friend with the last line of the song,"_ I'm coming around!"_

As soon as the song ended, Robin, Sumia, and Ricken broke out into a frenzied applause. The four boys that had helped Stahl watched with baited breath, hoping that their efforts didn't go to waste. Vaike crossed his arms and winked at Stahl, whose focus was solely on Cordelia," So, uh...did you like it? You probably realized that it was a love song-Oh gods, you're crying! I'm sorry! I didn't think-" His voice dropped when Cordelia jumped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck," C-Cordelia?"

"I loved it."

"Y-You did?" Stahl grinned in relief," Oh thank gods, because I thought that you might hate it-oomph?" He was cut off from his rambling by Cordelia, who pressed her lips against his. His eyes widened to the size of saucers, shock filling every aspect of his being. The mad applause was tuned out to merely a buzz, leaving him repeating the same thing over and over in his head; Is she kissing me?

He was only pulled out of his thoughts when Cordelia pulled away, giggling as soon as she saw his awestruck expression," How could I hate something so beautiful? Truthfully, I don't think I've ever been happier than when you sang to me just now. I want to be able to know that joy each and every day!" She shied slightly, suddenly worried that she may be acting a little too forward," That is, if you want to-"

"Of course I want to!" He cried," I have the biggest crush on you!"

The redhead smiled bashfully," Well that's a good thing, because I have a pretty big crush on you too. It may have taken me awhile to realize it, but you make me really happy," She pecked his cheek, making him blush an even brighter red than before.

"S-So that means you'll go out w-with me?" Stahl stuttered.

"Definitely."

The crowd of students cheered, relieved that the two had finally gotten together. Kellam was the first to congratulate the happy couple, followed quickly by Ricken and Vaike, who told Stahl about how impressed he was. Sumia wandered over to where Gaius and Henry were sitting and teased them about their "sudden romantic musical abilities". Henry only laughed it off while Gaius tried to defend his pride.

Robin took this opportunity to sneak over to Chrom, who was still seated at the piano and fiddling with his sheet music. She crept up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her chin in the crook of his neck," I didn't know you played the piano."

He hummed in acknowledgement," Yeah. Emm taught me how when I was younger, and I've been playing ever since. It's just that...after she died...," His voice trailed off as he gaze fell to the floor. He unconsciously wrapped and arm around his girlfriend and pulled her closer to him," But I could tell that this meant a lot to Stahl, so I helped out the best I could."

"He said that you wrote the music to that song; that is helping above and beyond," She remarked," You're extremely talented. Emmeryn would have been proud."

Chrom only responded by pulling her down so that she was seated in his lap. He situated his head in the crook of her neck and sighed," Robin?"

On any other day, she would've been blushing just as madly as Stahl had, but today was different; his grip around her waist was firm, but not tight, and his eyes were glossed over and focusing straight ahead," Chrom? Is something wrong?"

"Remember that Friday morning that we ditched school because I was an emotional wreck? You said that you'd be there for me if I was...," He squeezed his eyes shut, unintentionally letting a tear slip out," Can you stay with me?"

Robin's heart broke. As bad as it was to say so, she had nearly forgotten about Emmeryn's death. She couldn't help it, not with their new relationship, districts (and now state), the Grimleal, and their children from the future. It was hard to believe that it had just been three weeks ago," Oh Chrom...," She cupped his cheeks in her hands and kissed his forehead before pulling him into a tight hug," You don't even have to ask."

He managed to hold in most of his stress until the bell rang and their fellow students started to file out of the room. Stahl stopped by them and thanked Chrom for all his help before running out to arrive in class on time. Gaius, the one who cared less about being astute, also stopped by and noticed the tense aura surrounding the two. Sensing that they probably wanted to be alone, he handed Robin a lollypop and told her to give it to him to help make him feel better. While she was suspicious that the candy might've been drugged, she decided to put her suspicions of Gaius away for the moment and thanked him.

Once everyone was finally gone and the starting class bell rang, Chrom broke down again. He wasn't as frenzied as he was in the graveyard, but the stress that he had been holding in poured out. He told her about how he was thinking of Emmeryn the night he found Morgan, and how both Lissa, now that she had her hair cut after it was shot to even it out, and Emmy looked like her. He even brought up how he was jealous that Say'ri's brother might still be alive while his sister was forever gone.

Eventually he ran out of things to say, so he brought her into the uniform closet and sat down again, making sure that she was seated next to him before settling his head in the crook of her neck and talking again," Hey Robin?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you want to go on a date?"

The white haired girl blinked and turned to face her boyfriend, who was watching her hopefully," Uh, sure. I've never been on a date before, though. I'm not sure I'd be that much fun to be with."

Chrom snorted," Don't say stuff like that. I'm always in a better mood whenever I'm around you. So, are you free Saturday night?"

His girlfriend bit her lip bashfully," I don't think I have anything planned."

"Good. We'll do something then," The blue haired boy hummed," There's also Halloween next weekend, and it's a band tradition that we go camping on Halloween night. You should come to that too."

"Am I your date for that as well?" She teased.

Chrom rolled his eyes and nudged her," Of course you are. After all, I can't let anyone else have you."

"Oh, if you insist," She giggled.

A comfortable silence filled the closet again. Chrom, on one hand, was relieved that she actually wanted to go out with him and was mentally patting himself on the back for going through with it (beat that, Vaike). Meanwhile, Robin was trying to hide how excited she was. She had never thought to go on an actual date with Chrom, especially since the children started coming from the future. She often forgot that they were dating, because they fit together so well that she didn't even think about trying to impress him. Being a couple was just second nature to them by that point.

"Hey Robin?"

She pulled herself away from her thoughts and smiled," What-" The female drum major was cut off when her boyfriend pressed his lips against hers softly. Her stomach fluttered with butterflies as a lovely, warm feeling engulfed her. She gleefully returned the kiss, curling her hand so that it was cupping one of his cheeks. His arms didn't move from their spot around her waist, but they did pull her closer to him. Eventually, she broke apart for air, panting slightly as she did so. No matter how many times he kissed her, Robin wasn't sure she'd ever get used to the endearing feeling that came with it," Chrom?"

"I love you."

She flushed even pinker than she was before, still shocked that she ended up with a guy like him. Robin was fully aware that he wasn't perfect, especially with his temper and sensitivity. Yet for some unknown reason, Chrom was perfect for her," I love you too."

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Inigo groggily opened his eyes, surprised to find light filling the room. He groaned and moved his hand to rub his head, only to have it make impact with bandages. Oh yeah. He had almost forgotten about that again. Honestly, he would've preferred not remembering the entire ordeal, but that wasn't a possibility.

With a bit of effort, the brunette was able to pull himself into a sitting position so that he could observe his surroundings. The last thing that he remembered was Gerome telling Minerva to sniff out Brady, but nobody was in sight. From the looks of it, he was in the attic of an abandoned house on a cot. There were a few blankets and a plethora of newspapers scattered around, covering the floor like a second skin.

Inigo thought about calling for someone, but he didn't know if that was the best idea. The last place he wanted to be was captured, but he was positive that if that was the case, he wouldn't be housed so comfortably-

"I thought 'cha talked more."

The dancer let out a surprised yelp, mortified to find a dark haired girl sitting behind him. He hissed in pain and rubbed his stomach, trying to soothe the bruises that littered his body. He glanced back up angrily at the younger girl," What was that for?!"

She smirked and plopped onto the bed next to him, looking him over before popping a piece of gum into her mouth," Don't tell me that 'cha don't remember me, lover boy."

"Lover boy...," Inigo's jaw dropped as soon as he recognized her," Levy, is that really you? You're look so old! I thought you always wore you hair in ponytails! And what happened to your height?! You used to be so short-"

"Are you done?" She chuckled," The last time you saw me was before you volunteered for the YLH. I was only 9 years old back then, so of course I look older now," Levy crossed her legs and propped her elbow on top so that she could place her head in her palms," So, what girl did you anger to get that beat up?"

"It was no girl," The duo turned to the door, only to find Gerome and Minerva standing in the entrance. As soon as the dog realized he was finally awake, she pounced on the bed and licked his face. Gerome patted the husky's head and answered for Inigo," Walhart caught him and mistook him for a Grimleal member."

"What?" Levy blinked," Why didn't you fight back? Better yet, why haven't you called the police? Why not stomp out the threat before he kills our parents' friends?"

Inigo ran his hand through his hair," He saw me with Gerome and Lucina. If word got out, he'd go straight to her-I mean, them, and try and use them to get revenge. I don't want to risk it."

The dark boy rolled his eyes," It's always about the women, isn't it, Inigo? Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't started flirting with Levy yet."

"Hey, I've told you plenty of times that I only flirt with girls older than 13!"

"I am 13!" Levy turned pink, realizing that she wasn't helping anyone's case," Not that I want to date you. You're annoying."

Inigo frowned," I'm not annoying! You're just part of the minority that isn't attracted to me."

"Narcissistic, much?"

"You don't even know what that word means-"

"HEY!" Everyone shifted their attention back to the door where Brady was standing," Shu'ddup, will ya'? I don't want the neighbors knowin' that I'm stowin' away here."

Levy pointed childishly at Inigo," He was being mean!"

"I was being mean? You're the one that said I was annoying!"

"Shut up," Gerome demanded, immediately making the two quiet down," Brady is right. We cannot compromise our hide-out, especially because we're strangers to this time."

The brunette pursed his lips," Speaking of which, where exactly are we?"

Brady shrugged and leaned against the wall," Just outside of Farfort. I know it's kinda out of the way of everythin', but Lev wanted to be near where her pop grew up while we waited."

"What exactly are you waiting for?"

"Same thing everyone's waiting for," The medical boy replied," We're waiting for our parents to be ready to accept us. Speakin' of which, how is that comin' along?"

Inigo thought back to the conversation he had with Lucina a few days ago," Well, everyone in the Exalt family has come back and are currently living with them with Noire. Nah was recently found yesterday, and I assume that she is staying with them as well. As far as couples go, the Exalts have all found their soul mates, Gerome's parents just got together, Nah's parents were the first couple to get together, aside from Frederick and Tharja, of course, and your parents are really close to getting together. Cynthia's parents are on a thin line, apparently, but they are okay right now. I'm not quite sure how my parents are doing because they're both extremely shy, but I assume that it'll still be awhile until they actually reveal their feelings. Severa's mom apparently doesn't have a crush on Lucina's dad anymore, which is a good thing, but I don't know when her parents will get together either. That's all I know right now."

"We all know that your parents will be the last ones to become a couple," Levy teased," After all, neither of them can even look at each other in this point of history. How are they supposed to accept they have a son?"

Inigo clenched his jaw, but he couldn't shoot down her point. There was no way they were getting together any time soon. Whether he liked to admit it to anyone or not, he missed his parents badly, and his patience was beginning to run out. How much longer was he going to have to wait?

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Olivia stared at the screen on her laptop for a good twenty minutes, re-reading the email she received over and over again. Did The Verdant Forest Academy of Arts watch her audition video and actually like her? How was that possible? She wasn't that good of a dancer. Heck, the only reason she knew how to dance was because she started ditching her computer classes to sneak into the dance academy.

She cringed, thinking of how mad her parents would be when they found out that she sent in a video. There was no way they'd let her go to her audition in Rosanne that weekend. Why was life so cruel? Truthfully, she would ditch school the next two days just so that she could walk to the city and audition, but doing that would be risky. Maybe Basilio would drive her...

The pink haired girl quietly closed her laptop and slid it into her backpack before tiptoeing down her stairs and sneaking out the front door. She could've told her mom that she was leaving, but the woman would automatically assume she was going to another dance class. Once she was safely outside, she took off running towards the police station. The faster she was off of her own property, the lesser chance there was that she'd be stopped.

She felt a wave of relief wash over her when she reached the Regna-Ferox Station. Olivia straightened her clothes and hair, trying to make it seem less like she had been whipped out of a tornado, and strolled inside. She waved shyly to the receptionist and made her way to Basilio's office, meekly knocking on the door," B-Basilio? Are y-you in here?"

The tall man immediately opened the door and grinned, welcoming the dancer inside," Hey, kid! It's been awhile since you came to visit. Heck, I can hardly remember the last time you were here!" He motioned towards the seats in his office," Have a seat!"

She smiled nervously and followed his orders, anxiously strumming her fingers against her knees," S-So, I sent m-my audition tape in t-to Verdant Forest, and they w-want me to come to R-Rosanne this w-weekend and audition for them l-live. It'd b-be my first performance outside of c-colorguard and b-band concerts."

Basilio beamed and patted her shoulder, practically emitting pride," Ha! I knew that you were something special! Are you gonna do it?"

"Of course!" She blurted, blushing immediately afterwards," I-I mean, I r-really want to. It's j-just a t-two hour drive, and m-my parents w-wouldn't approve," Olivia glanced up hopefully," I w-was wondering if y-you would drive m-me."

The police chief frowned," I'm sorry, kid, but I'm booked solid in extra training this weekend. After all the gang related attacks, our department decided to create some classes that would help us get rid of the problem before it became a problem," He felt a stab of guilt as he watched the pink haired girl's face fall," You know that if I didn't have this position as chief that I'd go, right?"

"I-I know. It m-means a lot t-that you'd try to help," Olivia slowly got to her feet, trying to keep the tears in. It was starting to look like she'd either have to take a two day walk or give up her dream of becoming a professional dancer," T-Thanks for everything-"

"I retrieved the paperwork you wanted, chief," The dancer half-heartedly glanced at Lon'qu, who was trying his best to keep his eyes off of the girl. Despite his best efforts, a shade of light pink dusted over his cheeks. He ignored the fact that his face was now a different color and cleared his throat," Is there anything else you want me to do?"

Basilio waved the boy off," No, you can go-hold on," His eyes flickered from his apprentice to his daughter figure and allowed the wheels to start spinning in his head," Do you have plans for this weekend, Lon'qu?"

The brunette nodded," We have the extra training, remember? It is required for everyone to attend in order for-"

"Yeah? Well, you have a new assignment."

Lon'qu stopped mid sentence and tilted his head in confusion," I thought that it was mandatory."

"Don't question me, boy!" The police chief motioned for him to sit down next to Olivia, who had curiously sank back into her own seat," I have a secret mission for you. It may be the most important mission that you've done so far."

He rose his eyebrow," I understand that it must be important if you are requiring me to skip training. What would you like me to do?"

Basilio motioned to the pink haired girl next to him," Do you know Olivia? She goes to the same school as you."

Without warning, Lon'qu's cheeks flared bright crimson," Uh, y-yeah. We l-live in the same neighborhood."

"We're friends," Olivia clarified bashfully, oblivious to the fact that the boy's face was getting progressively more red.

The police chief shifted his eyes from one kid to the other, watching as both of them both tried to avoid and catch the other's gaze. From the looks of it, they both wanted to be more than friends. Maybe he could kill two birds with one stone for this assignment," That's great, because Lon'qu is going to be the one that takes you to your dance audition."

The two friends shared a surprised look, unsure if they had heard the man right," W-What?"

"Let me explain," Basilio coaxed," Olivia has an audition for a super prestigious dance college, but there is no way her parents are going to...be able to take her. In order for her to reach her audition in Rosanne, she's going to need someone to chauffeur her. While I would love to go, I am not able to get out of training and accompany her due to the fact that I am the chief. You, on the other hand, are only my apprentice. You aren't technically a cop yet, which means that I can get you out of the mandatory training. Instead, you're going to take Olivia so that she can follow her dreams. Does that clear it up for you?"

Lon'qu glanced over at the girl, who had her hands clamped together hopefully and was bouncing up and down in her seat anxiously," Why aren't her parents able to take her?"

"It's complicated," The dancer murmured softly, deflating at the thought of him figuring out what her home life was like. He had already caught her being locked out of the house, she didn't want him to discover just how far her parents would go to make sure she followed the path they wanted her to.

The police apprentice knew not to press the question further," Alright. I accept this mission, but I am going to have to borrow somebody's car. I don't own one yet."

"Done," Basilio affirmed," I'll let you two go over the details later, but for now, your shift is over. You're free to go home."

Lon'qu nodded and got to his feet, turning to the pink haired girl," I can accompany you home today, if you wish."

"Oh, okay. I don't want to push you to do something you don't want to, especially since you're taking me to my-" She paused, realization filling her," Oh my gods, I'm going to Rosanne to practice. I'm actually doing this!" Olivia hopped onto her feet and hugged the boy around his stomach," Thank you so much!"

Knowing how much he hated women, Basilio stepped forward to pull the girl off of his apprentice. He was stopped in his tracks when he saw the last thing he thought could happen; Lon'qu shyly patted her back as a half hug of sorts. He was touching a girl without pushing her away and yelling at her. How was that even possible?!

Speaking of which, the entire time Olivia talked to Lon'qu, she didn't stutter. He didn't know that was possible. He figured that it was just a problem that she had with everyone, but for some reason, his apprentice seemed to be the acceptation. Basilio watched the two students leave his office together, setting the feeling he had in stone. Did the kids he was so attached to have a crush on each other? The man grinned wider than he thought was possible and immediately set off to find Flavia and tell her.

* * *

**Welcome Brady and Levy! Sorry their introductions were short, there wasn't much I could do with them in this chapter. They are sure to show up more in the future! Speaking of which, do you guys have any guesses to who Levy's parents may be? As said, she is 13 and unintentionally mean because she has a crush on a certain somebody that will definitely cause at least a little drama in the future. Stahldelia is a thing now, yay! As I stated above, I am so sorry about how cheesy that scene was. This was just a thing that I had set in stone early on in the story, and I feel like them getting together any other way would be weird (I also got them to sing! BWAHAHA!). If you did not get my subtle announcment of it, I made Tiki a homosexual. Sorry if you hate that, because there will be a little more of it in this story. The reason for this is because I ship her with another girl (much like two other characters in this story that I'm also putting together that may come across as a shock). Chrom is still having conflictions over Emmeryn's death, as seen briefly in Morgan's chapter and heavily in this chapter. But, as a product, Chrom and Robin are actually going on a date! There will also be a chapter or two dedicated to the Halloween camping trip, and it will be mostly fluff. There was also a lot of Olivia and Lon'qu, and there will be a lot either in the next chapter or the chapter after! Also, what is up with Olivia's family? Don't forget that State is approaching either! That will probably be directly after Halloween. I don't have many plans for it yet, so we'll all have to see what happens! Review time!  
**

**Golden-Lightning:**** Thank you! Don't worry, I love hearing your feedback, no matter what you have to say! Thank you for that suggestion, it gave me some ideas of how I could get them together! Also, I've decided that Tiki is homosexual (as seen above) and Say'ri is Bisexual. That's fantastic! I'm glad that you're fanfic is doing great, I always love encouraging other writers! I'm glad that your writing is improving, because it makes writing other things such as letters and essays sooooo much easier (plus it's fun)! Thank you for reviewing! **

**Amy47101:**** Puns are the greatest, and I will love any pun, no matter how cheesy it is. It just has to make sense for me to love it. Haha, he definitely sleeps in batman pajamas and no one can convince me otherwise. Fleshing out characters is my life, as I have stated before, but so is making up new characters! Seriously, I love Hewitt to pieces (probably because I have planned out far ahead with him and he becomes much more apparent later in the story). Huskies are freaking adorable, and I can just imagine Minerva being a big sweetheart one minute and an attack dog the next! Vaike's role in this chapter was originally Gregor, but then Maribelle would be jealous (no matter how much she'd deny it) and then she'd drag Lissa along with her to watch as well. Not that that's a bad thing, but I figured that it'd be less complicated and funnier if it was just Vaike. I feel the same about Priam, but for some reason, I see him as a bachloer of sorts. Probably because he can't marry in the game. Haha, no, he's not Laurent's dad. Blue haired Laurent would be precious, but I already vaguely stated that Miriel was married to the male village character. Yeah...I'm weird. Haha, Ella and Demyan are adorable! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Kit-Cat Star:** **Yeah, Inigo's role in this story doesn't really get any easier for him. Just imagine how badly Lucina will react when she realizes that he isn't in his usual spot! Sorry if Brady's appearance in this chapter wasn't very large, it was hard to figure out what to do with that scene. I'll definitely write with more Nah in the next chapter because she is adorable and precious and I love her, and Gerome was in this chapter a bit as well. Thanks for reviewing! **

**EcoMagic:** **Yay, I'm glad you like it! I'm glad that the different universe is working out okay, because some of this stuff is tricky to transfer over. It's becoming easier as the story goes on because I've pretty much built what this universe is like, but it will become weird to figure out again once Grima appears. Ah well. Thank you so much, I'm planning on writing this entire story and finishing it all the way through (this thing is nearly 300 pages, after all. It'd be a shame to let that go undone). Thank you for reviewing! **

**supersoldiers3:**** Woohoo! People like my fanfic! Yay! Haha, when I first started playing, Brady was nothing like I expected him to be! It makes it even better that he's Maribelle's child! It's so precious! I hope your wait for this chapter wasn't too agonizing (lol), and you will definitely see more of the future children in later chapters! Thank you for commenting!**

**As said above, school starts up again for me on Tuesday. Honestly, I'll probably have more time to write since I'm not babysitting full days anymore, which means higher quality chapters (hopefully)! Thank you guys for sticking with me throughout this, and I love meeting more of you every week! We're almost at 300 pages guys! That is a huge deal for me, because I think that the longest thing I've ever written was just above that 300 page mark, so I'm breaking records this year! I'll see you guys next weekend! Thank you for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	29. Chapter 29 Preparations

**Hey guys! Happy first week of school for those who are still stuck in school like I am. If you are not, you're probably worrying about taxes and life and stuff, so you have it a lot harder than I do and I shouldn't complain. Anyways, besides my odd start, it's time to be happy because it's a new chapter! I don't think there are any new characters in this chapter, but a couple gets together! I will go more into detail about plans I've changed below, so if you're curious to what I'm doing, read below! Happy reading!**

* * *

The week was finally coming to a close, and fortunately, Tharja had that Friday off. After the past week of discovering three more children and taking two of them in (Nah was staying with Robin and Sumia until she could find a better living arrangement, but she hung out at the Exalt's house until school was over), she felt like taking a much needed break.

The dark haired woman decided to start looking for Halloween costumes for Orie so that she could take her trick or treating for the first time. Tharja was trying to convince Frederick to ditch the Band camping trip in order to be there for her, and for the most part, she was winning. The only problem was that they would need a chaperone to fill in for him, and while they'd ask Emmeryn any other year...

Tharja signed and shut her laptop, trying to think of a reasonable adult to look after the herd of kids. There was always Miriel, but she had her own child to look after. Philia had quit after Emmeryn's death and moved to find another job because she said it'd feel wrong to work for someone else while in the same office. She groaned and slammed her head on the counter, cursing for the thousandth time that her husband chose to be a band instructor for a group of kids with parent problems.

She was about to give up and wait to hear back from Frederick when something caught her attention; was someone cooking? The dark haired woman got up from her seat and wandered into the kitchen, surprised to find Noire pulling a cake out of the oven," You there."

"Eep?!" Her daughter nearly dropped the pastry, catching it in the nick of time. Unfortunately, the pan was still hot. She let out another surprised squeak and threw the dessert on the counter before running her hand under cold water," M-Mother!" Her face burned bright red when she realized the spectacle she had just performed in front of her mom," D-Did you need something?"

Tharja rose her eyebrow and motioned towards the cake," What are you doing? Are you trying to distract me?"

Noire blushed and hugged herself, wincing when she forgot about her burnt hand," Did I? I'm sorry, I didn't intend to, I swear."

"Why are you baking a cake, then?"

"Oh. That," The brunette fiddled with her sleeve, trying to find out the right way to explain the situation to her mother," Well, you see-"

Tharja groaned, not prepared to take on a full explanation," Nevermind, I don't care. Doesn't matter," Why did it have to be on her day off? Usually, she'd be relaxing, but now she had to make sure the house didn't blow up because of the extra four kids that weren't in school yet. She also wasn't quite used to the idea that her infant daughter was suddenly a nineteen year old-

Nineteen year old? That made her a legal adult. Tharja smirked," Actually, I have something I need you to do."

Noire perked up," R-Really? What is it?"

"The band is camping out on Halloween, and I need you to chaperone," Before she could think to protest, her mother cut her off," Don't make plans."

With that, the woman was gone. As soon as she left the kitchen, Noire cursed as quietly as she could and waved around her burnt hand. She was hoping that it would be different in the future. She didn't want to be as intimidated by her mother as she used to be, but now, she had just let the woman walk all over her.

"Hey, Noire! I'm here to put some cake in my belly!"

Noire squeaked again," Eep! O-Owain!" She turned to the familiar white haired boy and relaxed," Hello."

He hopped down the stairs and strolled up to her," Whoa, it smells amazing in here! It's making my mouth water."

The brunette rubbed her arm (with her good hand) shyly," I hope it's all right. Some of these proportions are a bit tricky," Her eyes trailed to the sink, which was filled to the brim with different measuring tools," If you want to wait a little bit, I can frost it for you."

"Nah, that's okay," He pulled two plates out of the cupboard along with two forks, handing one of each to Noire. Said girl took the cake knife out and carefully sliced to pieces before placing one on each plate," Bon appetite!" Owain didn't waste any time in digging in, taking a huge piece out of his cake," By the juggled axe of Kieran! This is amazing!"

Noire released the breath she didn't realize she had been holding," R-really? Oh, I'm so glad. I was positive I'd mess it up."

"It's like a lightning bolt of flavor from a fluffy nimbus of perfect texture!" He declared before scanning the area and whispering," Is this your mother's recipe? It tastes like magic!"

"N-No, not really. My mom isn't much of a cook," The brunette turned to the cookbook that he had helped her retrieve from the top of the fridge a few days ago," I just l-lit up once I saw this. I'd always wanted to try it, but...," She sighed, thinking back to the days that she had to scramble in order to get food," Well, we never had the ingredients."

Owain chuckled," Ha! Tell me about it! I spent most of my time in the future eating bugs," He took another bite and asked," So what do you call this delicious morsel, anyway?"

Noire opened her mouth to answer, but nothing came out. She quickly moved to retrieve the cookbook, frantically flipping through the pages," I...I don't know. The recipe never mentioned a name. It just says that it's chocolate cake."

"Then I must give it one!"

The nineteen year old tilted her head," Er...You will?"

Owain shrugged happily," Sure! If neither the book or you don't have a name for it, I doubt anybody does. I may as well give it a new one!"

"I...I suppose that's okay," There was no harm in letting the eccentric boy name the pastry. She was surprised that she didn't expect it from him, seeing that he named all of his weapons (even the sticks that he picked up).

The white haired boy beamed and took another bite, chewing slower than he had before with his eyes closed. Once he swallowed, the words rolled off of his tongue," A harmonious clash of sweet and bitter rise up through a field of earthen brown...A single whole, when sliced, shows two tiers joined by icing, as two hearts by love...It's coming to me...Brace yourself! It's...coming...to...me...!" His eyes flickered open and he pointed to the dessert," Behold! The Garden of Eternal Devotion!"

Noire gaped, shocked at how easily he had made his sentences flow. She had only heard phrasing and words like that in old legends and stories. It brought her back to before her father died; he would read her a new story every night, spinning unfathomable tales that would bring her far away from the wretched situation they were in. Hearing it again caused her heart to stop and her eyes to subconsciously close as she tried to grasp memories that were just out of her reach," That's...That's beautiful, Owain," She starting clapping, only to wince slightly. Darn her for constantly forgetting her burnt hand. She brushed off the brief pain and tried to cover her tracks with a smile," You're a poet! You just...poemed!"

"I did? I mean, um...," He adopted his colorful personality again and laughed it off," Ha ha ha! Of course I did...," Owain's eyes fell on her bright pink hand," Hey, did you burn yourself?"

"N-No-I mean, yes, but it doesn't hurt badly."

He rolled his eyes at that and gently took her hand in his," It may not hurt now, but it could get infected. It's best that we wrap it up quickly before it gets worse," Owain smirked," Fear not, milady! I will wrap thy wound!"

Without warning, he grabbed her waist and hoisted her up onto the counter. Noire let out a mortified squeak, embarrassed that she had to be pampered like a child," Eep! Owain, are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Of course I do!" He replied, pulling a first aid kit out from underneath the sink," My mom was studying to be a doctor, remember? I learned my fair share of medical...stuff...," The white haired boy took her hand back and gently cleaned it before wrapping it in gauze," We need to share your cake with the others! I'm sure they'd love it, but we'd better eat it all before the others get home from school. I'm not sure there'd be enough unless you'd make another."

Noire shifted, thinking over her next words carefully," Um, so if I do...will you name it again? L-like before? I mean, like a poem?"

This time, Owain was the one to blush. His ears turned slightly pink, and he cleared his throat uncomfortably," S-sure, why not?"

"Is that cake I smell?" The two were pulled away from their conversation by Morgan and Nah, who were eyeing the dessert greedily," I don't suppose you're going to let us have some of that?"

Noire giggled and pulled an additional two plates out of the cupboard," I don't see why not!"

The rest of the day passed by rather easily, with the four kids enjoying the cake and chatting about school that they were going to start attending next week. While Morgan and Owain would be in the same school, Nah was going to have to start middle school, and Noire was going to take online courses while looking after her younger self for her parents.

Eventually, the rest of the family returned home from school. Chrom greeted Morgan by ruffling his hair before dragging himself upstairs to "get his homework out of the way". Lissa, who had brought Maribelle over to try and guilt her into finally asking Gregor out, followed her brother's suit. That left the other future children to hang out in the kitchen. Emmy sat herself next to Nah while Lucina stood between Owain and Noire. Frederick was the last one to entire the house, looking tired, yet motivated. He pressed a kiss on his daughter's head to greet hr and leaned into the living room," Tharja?"

The woman wandered into the kitchen and kissed her husband's cheek," I've got good news."

"Really? So do I," Frederick smiled," Ladies first, darling."

"I found a chaperone for your silly camp tradition."

The brown haired man blinked in surprise," Oh, have you? That's odd; I have also found someone willing to look after them. Do you remember Priam from two years ago? He was the senior soloist in the winter concert, and now he is the assistant basketball-"

"I don't care; is he over 18?" Frederick nodded," Good. Luckily for you, I've found someone over 18 that will be able to help him," She nudged her daughter and smirked," Noire here is going to chaperone."

The father rubbed his chin thoughtfully," Yes, I think that with the combined authority of the two, I should be able to stay for Halloween. After all, this isn't a school sanctioned event, which means that the teacher does not have to be present. Noire, are you sure you're okay with this?"

This was her chance to stand up for herself. Sure, she didn't mind the whole concept of camping with her friends and the younger version of their parents, but she needed to grow a spine in order to-

Her thoughts were cut off by the warning glare Tharja was sending her," I-I'm looking forward to it," Dammit! She was so close to finally taking a stand, and once again, she was shot down by her mother. Lucina rose her eyebrow questioningly at her friend, but Noire only shrugged in response. As much as she was hoping for her relationship to be different with her parents, it looked like some things would always stay the same.

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As soon as Sumia discovered that both of her best friends were going on their first dates, she made it her mission to help them have the best possible times they could. That was why she forcibly grabbed the two of them after school and declared that they were going shopping.

While Cordelia was super excited, Robin couldn't be more out of her element. Was she supposed to wear a skirt or a dress? Did she have to wear heels in order to be closer to his height, or was he okay with her wearing her usual sneakers? Where were they going? Should she dress up or dress casually?

Eventually, these questions lead into deeper, more intrusive ones; would Chrom accept her if she wore the wrong thing? What if she embarrassed him in public? Did he wish she was more affectionate? Robin groaned and buried her face in her hands while waiting for Cordelia to exit the changing room, already coming up with several ways she could bomb the date.

"Nervous?"

The white haired girl wearily glanced up at Sumia, who was giving her a comforting smile," How'd you know?"

She giggled," I've been on dates before, Robin. The first boy I actually dated was Stahl in 6th grade since he asked me to the middle school dance. That night went oddly, though, and we agreed to remain friends. It was just too weird to date someone who was my friend."

The drum major felt as if her best friend had unintentionally stabbed her," B-But Chrom is my friend. Does that mean our relationship is destined to fail? Oh gods, it does! What was I thinking?!" She pulled her cellphone out and started to dial," I need to cancel this before I ruin-"

"No!" Without warning, Sumia slapped the phone out of her hands," You and Chrom are different! Your friendship is so strong that it bloomed into something deeper! Don't compare yourself to my sixth grade self!" She softened and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder," You don't actually think you and Chrom are destined to fail, right?"

Robin bit her lip and pulled at the edge of her sleeve,"...N-No, I...I don't know, Sumia. Do I really deserve him? He's a sweet guy that will probably come across a girl that is much better suited for him-"

"Robin..," The clarinetist took her best friend's hand and squeezed it," I know that you're nervous for this, because this is the first step that solidifies your guys' relationship. But take a moment to think about it; You two are inseparable, and even when you fight, it never lasts long. You're always there for each other, no matter what's going on in your own lives. You said you loved each other as well, which is a huge commitment for a high school relationship," Sumia's eyes sparkled," I have no doubt in my mind that you deserve each other, and you should feel silly for questioning it in the first place."

The white haired girl let out a shaky laugh and raked her free hand through her snowy locks," I know you're right. I guess I'm just nervous like you said."

"Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I'm positive that Chrom is just as anxious as you are. Just you wait; Saturday night is going to be one of the most memorable nights of your life!"

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"I need your help!"

Lissa, who had been in the middle of confronting Maribelle about her feelings, turned to her older brother and raised her eyebrow," What's your problem, big bro?"

The blue haired boy collapsed on her bed and began nervously drumming his fingers on his knees," I'm going on a date with Robin tomorrow night, but I have no idea what to do! I don't want her to have a bad time, but I also don't want to go over the top! What should I do?!"

"You should do something romantic," His sister stated," Duh."

"Lissa, darling, that will not help your older brother woo Robin," Maribelle tutted," I suggest that since she doesn't seem to be the...classy sort, so you should do something simple, yet nice."

Chrom nodded carefully," Elaborate."

The blonde pursed her lips thoughtfully," There are several paths you can take in order to win her heart. Most romantic cliches involve picnics, but that doesn't seem very fitting for you. I suggest you do something simplistic, like stargazing."

"Ooh, yeah! That's totally romantic!" Lissa agreed.

The blue haired boy felt a heavy weight be taken off of his shoulders," And you two are sure she'd like it?"

"Absolutely!" His sister affirmed.

He bit his lip," I'll keep that in mind, but I don't want it to turn out boring. That, and I'd have to take a crash course in astrology," Chrom joked," What about you, Lissa? Have you been on any dates with...him?"

Lissa rolled her eyes at her judge mental brother," If by "him" you mean Henry, then yes, I've been on three dates with him. He's a huge history nerd, so we like to visit museums."

"Really? He seems like the type that'd take you to a blood bank."

"Hey, I shot that idea down when he suggested it!" Lissa defended," Look, if you want to impress Robin, you're going to have to do something unique. She's not just any girl, so this can't just be any date."

The blue haired boy rubbed his forehead," Ugh, why do girls have to be so cryptic?"

Maribelle narrowed her eyes menacingly," What was that?"

"N-Nothing!" Chrom turned back to his younger sister," What are some "unique" places I can take her?"

"Just bring her someplace she's never been."

"That doesn't help!"

Lissa groaned," Do I need to spell everything out for you? Gods, boys are so stupid," She took a deep breath and talked in her most simplistic voice," You could go to a cafe, a concert, a garden, a cute shop, the beach, a chocolate factory, ect. ect. Pick one."

One of her ideas combined with Maribelle's clicked together, and for the first time since he asked her out, a smile spread across Chrom's face," I think I have an idea. Thanks guys!"

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Friday had an odd turn for Libra when he discovered that Panne was given a suspension in her English class for starting a fight. At first, he brushed it off as a rumor, but when she didn't show up for band, he learned just how true the gossip was. That was why he was awkwardly standing at her door, hesitating to knock. Would she be in a bad mood? That wouldn't be too surprising, due to the elements of her suspension. Just as he was about to leave, her door opened, and Panne herself ran straight into him," What-Oh. It's you."

Libra straightened up, deciding to skip pleasantries and cut straight to the point," Panne, I just talked with Chrom after band class. I heard that you were involved in an...altercation with some of the other students."

She visibly darkened at the memory of the encounter," I don't see how that's your concern," The dark haired girl replied coldly.

Panne moved to shut the door, but he stopped it," Isn't it, though?" This seemed to catch her attention, so he continued," The next time you find yourself in a situation like this, please, let me know. You needn't fight for my sake. I can express my own displeasure."

She grimaced,"...You heard, then?"

"Indeed. A little bird told me the cause of your scuffle," He mentally thanked Chrom for giving him the information," Apparently you intervened when someone began telling cruel jokes about me?"

Panne crossed her arms huffily, trying to protect what little pride she had left," Hmph. Perhaps I was just in the mood to hit someone that day."

The boy tilted his head in confusion, baffled at why she wouldn't trust him. After all, he had trusted her ever since she told him the history of her tribe. Had he done something to deter her away? Libra sighed," You always insist on hiding your kindness and denying your compassion. I would dearly love to see you embrace these traits more openly."

"I didn't ask your opinion," Her eyes fell onto the ground after she realized the harsh bluntness of her words," I apologize. It's just that…Speaking with you made me feel better," She began to clench her fists, hardening up to the outwardly cold person he was used to," And hearing those students angered me. That is all. Now we're even."

Libra smiled warmly, catching the brunette off guard," You amaze me, Panne. The light within you shines so brilliantly. Never losing its purity of character or allowing the world to dim its luster... I thank the gods and the exalt for granting me the chance to bask within its glow."

"You're insane...And a terrible flatterer."

"Apologies. Have I embarrassed you?"

He watched as her cheeks started to tint pink," ...Hmph."

Libra only realized at that moment that he had feelings stronger than he was used to for this strange girl. Was it because they shared a horrible experience, or was it because she defended his pride when she didn't have to? The blonde man fiddled with his class ring, ultimately deciding that if had feelings he could act upon, it was going to be now or never," Panne. There is something important that I would like to discuss with you. Might I–

"Speak your business."

"Very well. I would like to ask only that you listen and give me a fair chance," He quietly slipped off his class ring and took her hand in his, pressing the small item into her palm,"...And that you accept this ring."

Much to his surprise (and horror), she didn't say anything at all. She only closed her fist around the object and stared at him intensely, causing his insides to churn. Was she mad? Was he being too forward? Libra gulped," Er, Panne? Thank you for accepting the ring, but, um...Have you nothing to say?"

Panne merely shrugged," You asked me to listen."

The religious boy closed his eyes in frustration and pinched the bridge of his nose," Of all the times to start doing as you're asked..."

"Come again?"

"N-never mind. I retract my prior request for listening. Please, speak your mind. Be frank," He added nervously.

With a straight face, she simply stated," I feel like leaping across a mountain range."

Libra blinked, unsure of how to take her reply," ...Is it safe to assume that means you're happy?"

"That's not it," He felt his heart stop, but luckily, Panne had more to say," Something greater. I suspect this is...bliss."

He nearly collapsed in relief. Honestly, he hadn't expected it to be this hard to confess his feelings," Well, I'm blissful to hear it! And relieved..."

Panne slipped the ring on her finger," What made you think to give me this?"

"...Greed, I fear. I succumbed to my baser inclinations. When presented with your brilliant light, I knew I had to have it all to myself," While his words were poetic, the deliver was a bit jumbled and definitely full of nerves.

The brunette cracked a tiny smile," That's quite the desire, to have driven a man of the cloth to fall from grace. Perhaps I should be the one thanking your gods."

Libra nodded awkwardly," Mostly I feel like thanking you, Panne. So, are you willing to try this? I am fairly new to it as well, so it will be a trial and error experience."

Panne chuckled softly," I suppose it will be an enjoyable experience, nonetheless. I accept."

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Since the weekend was finally here, Lucina decided to pay Inigo another late night visit and talk to him about Morgan. He would be elated to discover that her brother was alive, but he would also be just as confused about the whole ordeal as she was. Maybe he could help her figure out what was going on.

The blue haired girl took a deep breath and stepped inside the abandoned building, retracing her footsteps to find Inigo's usual spot. Although the snow had melted as soon as it had touched the ground that week, it was still bitterly cold. She hoped that he was okay and not sick, because if something was wrong with him, there was no way she would leave him to make his condition even worse.

Her eyebrows furrowed when she reached the spot that Inigo always was; his backpack and sleeping bag was still there, but there was no sign of the boy. She immediately jumped to the conclusion that he was dead, but shooed that notion away as quickly as she could. Lucina couldn't risk being emotional at a time like this, and she knew that he could take care of himself.

She had to be calm so that she could find him before someone else did. The last place she saw him was near the beginning of the week, when he and Gerome came from school and he stayed behind. What did that mean for him? She assumed that after finding out he wasn't in their school, they'd let him go.

What if they turned him in to the police? He was too young to go to jail! They wouldn't do that, right? Lucina searched her brain for any rumor of a boy being thrown into jail, but thankfully, nothing came up. A story that unique would definitely make the news, after all, so she wasn't too nervous.

So where did Inigo end up? He wouldn't disappear without telling her because he'd know how much he'd worry her if he did so. Dammit! It seemed that he had just vanished off the face of the planet right after she had found him!

"Luci?"

The bluenette flipped around, horrified to find her younger brother standing behind her," M-Morgan? What are you doing here?!"

The fourteen year old blinked," Uh, I was going to ask you the same thing. It's midnight, Luci. Why are you in an abandoned building full of homeless people?"

"Did you follow me?"

Her little brother seemed to be getting frustrated at how much she was avoiding his questions," Of course I followed you! I was worried when I saw you leave the house alone. Is everything okay?"

Part of her wanted to tell him about it, but an even larger part of her firmly protested against it. She had lost him before, and she didn't want to risk putting him in danger again," I'm fine. I was just looking to see if an old friend of mine was still in town."

Morgan noticed his sister's nerves and patted her arm reassuringly," Don't worry, Luci! I'm sure that you're friend will come back soon!"

As anxious as she was about the entire situation, Morgan's smile was too infectious to brush off," Heh, I guess you're right. We better head home before someone wakes up and finds out that we're gone."

"Yeah, dad would have a heart attack if he realized we left this late at night," The blue haired boy laughed. The two siblings exited the building as quietly as they could and started the trip back to their house. On any other occasion, Lucina would be elated to having quality time with her brother. Yet today, it felt so wrong. How was he alive? Why didn't she have any answers? While she was stuck in her thoughts, Morgan spoke up again," Speaking of dad, did you know at he's going on a date with mom tomorrow?"

His older sister nodded half-heartedly," I did. Dad tried asking me for advice, but I didn't know what to tell him. I've never been on a date myself," She added softly.

Morgan beamed," Hey, we should go on a date!"

"W-What?!" The blue haired girl turned fire hydrant red," That's impossible and inappropriate-"

"No, not like that!" He chuckled," I meant that we should have some brother-sister-bonding time! There so much stuff I want to try out, and I'd love to do it with you!"

Lucina faced her brother and bit her lip," I dunno, Morgan-"

"It'll be fun!"

"But-"

"Come on!"

She held her hands up in defeat," Fine. What do you want to do for our "brother-sister-bonding time"?"

Morgan grinned wider than she thought would've been possible," Yay! You said yes! I know exactly what we can do! You can pick some activities, and I'll pick some, and when tomorrow night rolls around, we can go on a bunch of adventures! The one rule is that we're not allowed to tell each other what we've picked. It'll be a surprise!"

Much like his smile, his enthusiasm was contagious," Okay, it sounds like fun."

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**Next week's chapter is the Saturday that we've all be waiting for! It's an OliviaxLon'qu auditon day, a Chrobin date night, and a blueberry sibling adventure! I'm not sure how many chapters it'll take up, but at the most, it'll be two. Anywho, let's talk about this chapter! So, I've been thinking a lot about NoirexOwain, and I don't actually think I'm going to go through with it in this story (sorry about the misleading ship moment at the beginning, I thought about what I'm doing with them later in the story and changed it after I wrote that part). The main reason I'm changing things around is because of A) Noire is four years older than him and going to college and stuff, and B) Spoilers I wish I could tell you about. It'll be weird, and it's non-accessible couples that will be there, but I like the way they're going. Tharja has a weird relationship with Noire in comparison to Orie, which I will go deeper into later in the story. Hehe, Robin and Chrom are both so nervous about their dates (I think that I wrote those parts because I had no idea what kind of date they'd go on until I finished writing the entire chapter and went back to add more into Chrom's part). PannexLibra is a thing now, which means that a cute little Yarne is coming in the future (maybe with another future child *wink wink*)! Finally, we've got exposition for Lucina and Morgan, and Inigo has vanished from his home in the abandoned building! Where has he gone? Just kidding, we all know where he and four other kids are. Review time!  
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**Golden-Lightning:** **I almost put Severa in this chapter, but I didn't want her to show up so soon after her parents got together. It'd be a weird coincidence. That only means that she'll show up really soon, though! Yay, I'm not the only undergrad on this website (not that I would be. It'd honestly be ever weirder if I was...)! The Lon'quxOlivia part will most likely be the most interesting part of the next chapter, because we're going to get some background on Olivia's past! I love reading reviews because I love getting to talk and interact with you readers! It helps me see what I should write next and sometimes, it gives me ideas! Thank you!**

**Amy47101: **** Haha, I totally saw Ricken as being the one kid that followed Chrom around like a puppy, begging for him to let him help. I like to think that Plan B was Gaius's idea, and as soon as Stahl shot that down, Gaius just knowingly winked at Vaike. It's a punny world after all (these just keep getting worse and worse). Speaking of puns, Chrom actually made a joke today (_Really? He seems like the type that'd take you to a blood bank_). Aww, that'd be adorable! Then, as soon as Minerva 1 and Minerva 2 discover each other, they just stare at each other while being incredibly weirded out. It'd be just like when Chrom met Cobalt (lol)! Oh my gosh, I lost it when I read your Gregor rendition of the scene! It made me regret all of my life choices, haha. Yeah, I've heard of that too, but Anna has a man in this story (and future offspring)! On the bright side, I've found someone for Priam! I'm going to have to make up their supports, but I already have a ton of ideas. There is a ton of stuff in this story, so it's not hard to miss stuff. Still, blue haired Laurent would be precious! That's where I got the name! I used to be a huge Fairy Tail fan, and when I was going through my notes of characters in the story, I realized that I gave _ a child! I didn't really give it a second thought until after I posted it and was like: Oh...Yeah, I guess they share a name. Oops.: Thank you for reviewing!  
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**EcoMagic:**** I'm glad! I agree, it always makes me sad whenever a writer has to stop their story. The beginning turned out to be much funnier than I thought it was, which is good! I have to balance out my depressing parts with light hearted parts. Poor Chrom, his life is so chaotic at the moment. I'd hate to think what would happen if he was alone in all of it. Well, I can tell you that Emmeryn is not coming back to life. I've always found that a little weird, and I feel that it takes away from the impact the story has. Other than that, you'll have to wait and see! Thank you for reviewing!**

**supersoldiers3:** **I felt exactly the same! The good thing is that I like all of my classes this year! One of them is a bit stressful right now, but I'll fall into the swing of things eventually. Olivia x Lon'qu is my second favorite pairing in the entire game (aside from Chrobin of course), but they're the oddest to write because they're so dang shy! It'll take them awhile to confess (or will it?). Severa will not be in the next chapter, but she will be in it soon! That's okay! I think the first time I ever posted something on this, the same chapter appeared twice...I hope that this chapter was worth the wait! Thank you for commenting!**

**Guys, this is chapter 29. There are 10 pages per chapter. If you put that all together, that means that next week will be the 300 PAGE MARK! WOOHOO! YAAAASSS! Along with that, we are also almost at 100 REVIEWS! DOUBLE WOOHOO! DOUBLE YAAASSS! Seriously, you guys have been so supportive, and I can't wait to reach this mark with you guys! I think that the longest thing I've ever written was just over 300 pages (it was a made up story that dragged on really long and was horrible), and with the direction that this story is heading, I'll easily break that record! I'M STOKED! I may or may not write a one shot (if I have freetime, of course) when I break that record. It'd be about my favorite playthrough (that wasn't my RobinxChrom playthough, of course), so it'd start Tanith! Tell me if you guys are interested in that or not. Alright, I think that's all the news I have, so I'll see you guys next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	30. Chapter 30 Deeper Relations

**Hey guys! So, per usual, I wrote the second half of this chapter today. I almost didn't post today because there is a Doctor Who marathon of episodes I haven't watched yet on today, but in the end, I decided that you lovelies mean more to me than TV. Today's chapter is the Saturday full of plans! That means that there is some Chrobin, Olivi'qu, and sibling Morgan and Lucina time! There is also a song that Olivia dances to for her audition, and if you'd like to know what the song is called, it is _Fountain of Dreams_ from Kirby. I prefer the orchestra version of it, but any version is good! I hope you guys enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening or _Fountain of Dreams_**

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Lon'qu had always had a nagging suspicion that there was something Olivia was hiding from him about her home life. It all started when she had to go home in just her leotard, but things quickly escalated when he discovered her outside of her house in the dead of night. Now, he was picking her up at 4:00 in the morning.

While a large part of him was worried about what could be going on between her and her family, another part of him knew that she would tell him when the time was right. After all, it took years for him to open up to Basilio and tell him about what happened to Ke'ri. Forcing her to confess wouldn't get him anywhere.

The car ride to Rosanne was mostly silent, with the occasional question or two from him. He could tell that Olivia was incredibly nervous to be stepping out of her boundaries, but it was still odd to see the girl that was always trying to make him open up so quiet. The pink haired girl had one headphone in her ear and her eyes on a page full of neatly written noted, and if Lon'qu strained his ears, he could hear the exact same song playing over and over again. It became obvious that she was far out of her comfort zone, and was stressing herself out," You'll do fine."

She nearly jumped out of her seat in surprise," W-What?"

"You are a good color guard captain, and I have no doubt that your skills have transferred over into your dancing," The percussionist stated," Don't be nervous."

Olivia smiled sadly," That means the world to me, but there are going to be girls there who have been dancing since they could move. How am I supposed to compare?"

"Simple; you want it more than they do. Use that to your advantage, and nothing will stand in your way."

The girl nodded shakily, both shocked and pleased with the amount of depth he was hiding behind his stoic attitude," You're right. I guess I'm just really nervous. I don't really perform to be judged."

Lon'qu understood what she meant," Would you prefer it if I supported you backstage?"

Her entire demeanor brightened at his offer," You wouldn't mind?"

"Anything for you," Realizing his wording, the police apprentice quickly back-peddled," It is my duty, after all."

Olivia bit her lip," Right...your duty."

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Out of all of the places Chrom could've taken her, Robin was both surprised and delighted when he took her to the ocean. It had been a long drive, but it was entirely worth it; due to the cool temperatures, there was nobody in sight. They had an entire beach to themselves.

Robin couldn't help but squeal a little when she got out of the car," Southtown's best beach, huh? I don't doubt it. This place is amazing! If only Chrom and I had this beach to ourselves during the summer-what fun we could have! We could swim, and collect seashells, and chase each other through the surf..."

Said boy snuck up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, making sure to tuck his chin onto her shoulder," It's true we haven't had very many chances to relax lately."

The white haired girl stiffened in surprise and flicked her boyfriend's forehead," Ack! Chrom?! You heard all of that? Don't eavesdrop on me!"

Chrom chuckled," If you're going to talk to yourself so loudly, I'd suggest moving farther down the beach."

She tried to come up with a witty comeback, but nothing would come to mind. Instead, she held up her hands in defeat and leaned into his hug," I'm sorry. I shouldn't be daydreaming like that in times like these."

"Don't apologize. Everyone needs to unwind now and again. You should enjoy yourself. I see how tense you tend to become lately, Robin...," He snuggled closer to her," If this isn't the place to let your hair down a little, I don't know where is. And I admit, the thought of being alone here with you when it's warmer has crossed my mind as well..."

Robin blushed and turned around so that she was facing him," Oh, Chrom...I'm so glad you feel the same way. I've never been anywhere this beautiful before. It's so relaxing...," Her brow furrowed, and the ticklish feeling of a memory just out of her reach started nagging at her brain again," Or perhaps I've been here hundreds of times and I just don't remember..."

The blue haired boy frowned and tilted his head so that it was touching hers," Robin..."

She shook of her uncertainty and forced on a smile. Now was not the time to worry about her forgotten past," Sorry. Didn't mean to get all somber on you there. If you have ordered me to let my hair down, who am I to argue? Of course, it wouldn't do to monopolize whatever plans you have made for the two of us...," Her eyes strayed to a tide pool and flew open, glimmering with a childlike curiosity that was rare for her. Robin bit her lip and weighed her options carefully, but eventually, she gave in," I promise I'll be quick! I'm just going to poke around in that tide pool over there...," She pecked his cheek before skipping over to the area and crouching to the ground to get a better view of the sea life.

Chrom smiled to himself," Heh. I don't think I've ever seen Robin so excited. This place really is everything it's cracked up to be. I owe it to her to help her enjoy it as much as she can while we're here. I only wish I knew how to go about it...," Damn, where were Lissa and Maribelle when he needed them? He scowled and tried to come up with some ideas of his own," Should I spoil her like Emmeryn used to pamper Lissa and I? Maybe I'll help her gather seashells...," The teenager shook his head," Or maybe not. I feel ridiculous. I'll think of something-"

"Chrom, check it out!" Before he could even consider wandering over to her, she was by his side," I caught this weird creature! Isn't this thing just bizarre?" Robin opened her hands up and revealed the tiny hermit crab resting in her palm," I wonder if we could put it to any use in marching band...," She caught her fellow drum major's con-fuddled look and pouted," What's wrong, Chrom? Don't you like it? I know it's not the cuddliest critter, but it's kinda cute in its own way!"

"Hmm? No, no it's fine. I was just distracted, sorry," The blue haired boy smirked," Don't worry about me. Go frolic with your weird little friend to your heart's content."

Robin stuck out her tongue playfully," Ha, maybe I will!" With that, she rushed back over to the tide pool to play with the other creatures. It made him elated to see the normally stressed girl acting so carefree and cheerful. It made him crave to see her smile more. He adored the joyful glow she exuded when she was happy. With this in mind, Chrom snuck further down the beach, his mind set on making this one of the best days of his girlfriend's life.

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Lucina rocked back and forth on her heels and watched her younger brother slide his sweatshirt on over his head. She was conflicted on how she should feel about this arrangement of them hanging around each other, especially since this Morgan may not be her actual brother. Still, the part of her that desperately wanted to see her baby brother again won over, and she had a list of things to do on their bonding day.

The blue haired boy grinned in excitement and lead his older sister out the door," Okay, so do you want to pick what we do first, or do you want me to pick? I could go either way. Just pick whatever makes you happy!"

She shrugged," Uh, I guess you can go first."

"Great! I've got my first place picked out and everything!" He pulled a small notecard with crudely written destinations scribbled on it and proclaimed," The first place we shall go is...the Bounce Bereau!"

Lucina blinked," What is Bounce bureau?"

Her younger brother bounced on the balls of his feet," It's a magical place where there are several bounce houses that we can jump on!"

"...Aren't places like those meant for children?"

"Technically, we are children."

The blue haired girl bit her lip, praying that no one from school would see her at such a place. She didn't really care about what their opinions were of her, but she wanted to draw the least amount of attention towards her as possible. Still, it was hard to say no when her baby brother was looking at her with such enthusiasm," Oh, alright. We can go."

"Yes! It'll be tons of fun!"

Morgan linked his arm in hers and dragged her in the direction of their destination, blabbering excitedly about anything and everything. It shocked her how positive he was, especially after losing his memories and...no. This was a different Morgan. This one was still alive while her brother was dead.

Lucina hugged herself a little closer, trying to ignore the nagging voice in her head that said that this might be the same Morgan she knew. She didn't want to get her hopes up, just to have it dashed by a stranger. What made matters worse was that he seemed entirely convinced that they were siblings, and she didn't want to hurt him.

"Ah, perfect! Hey, Luci! Come here!"

She was so stuck in her own thoughts that she hadn't realized the fourteen year old and wandered off. Lucina eyed his boisterous smirk and took note of his odd body language," What are you hiding behind your back, Morgan?

In one fluid motion, he pulled out a bouquet of bright wild flowers," Ta-dah! It's for you!"

Lucina gasped and scooped the present into her arms so that she could observe them," What lovely flowers! Thank you," She inhaled the glorious scent and sighed in contentment. She didn't know flowers could smell so nice-wait. Why had he just given her a bouquet out of the blue? She cocked her head curiously," What is the occasion?"

"Kids were picking 'em in the park we just passed through," Morgan explained cheerfully," They gave some to me, so that's your cut. Look, mine is a flower crown!" He placed the crudely made accessory onto his head and beamed," Don't I look awesome?!"

Lucina giggled," I don't think I've ever seen such vibrant colors..."

Her younger brother nodded in agreement," Wonderful, isn't it? Even with all the bad stuff that is going on, the flowers still bloom. Just think what it will look like once you find your friend and mom and dad don't have to worry about the Grimleal! Everything will feel like it's in bloom! Fields awash in color!"

At first, she couldn't find the right words to say. Despite the fact that the only thing he could remember was the past week of his life, he was still positive. He cared about her happiness above his own even though she still questioned his identity. The irony of the situation caused her to crack a small smile," ...Heh."

"Hmm?"

"I haven't met anyone as optimistic as you before. I'm a bit envious, really," She added softly.

Morgan smiled softly,"Why? Is something on your mind? Some worry eating at you? I know that you're friend is still missing, but there seems to be more to the story than that."

"Not a specific concern, just a grim memory that refuses to leave me alone," The blue haired girl combed her fingers through her hair and exhaled, mentally berating herself for bumming out the mood,"...I apologize. I have no place to complain when you've lost your entire memory. You carry your own set of worries, right? Living in a strange time, without a firm grasp on who you are."

The fourteen year old pondered her words for a few minutes, letting them fully sink in before shrugging," Ehh, it's not as bad as you might think. True, it can leave you feeling a bit...untethered, maybe? Afloat?" He folded his hands," But that's just another word for free. Every experience is brand new! The smell of the air, the color of those flowers-it's all so fresh and intense!"

Lucina chuckled," Hmm...I'll say it again: I envy you. I arrived in this time with a heart aching because of painful memories I couldn't fix."

"But your parents are still alive in this time, isn't they? We can fix things now and prevent their deaths!"

She managed to produce a smile for him, but what he didn't know was that the person she was mourning was him. There was no way for her to go back and fix her brother's death, and the mistake she made that night would haunt her forever-

"Come on, Luci! We're here!"

The trumpet player shook away her negative thoughts and followed Morgan inside, unable to completely destroy the bad feeling she had.

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Robin couldn't remember ever feeling so carefree. She had spent most of the day running around the beach and nearby park, starting a collection of sea glass and taking pictures on the disposable camera she bought. At some point of the day, she had somehow separated from her boyfriend. After spending a good fifteen minutes looking for him, she finally found his familiar mop of blue hair," Hey, Chrom! How goes your...," Her eyes fell on a pile of broken shells," Huh? What's up with all those seashells?"

Chrom nearly jumped to the moon, letting out a surprised squeak. Once he realized that it was just her, he rubbed his arm bashfully," Oh, hello, Robin. I was trying to fashion a necklace out of them," His face flushed pink," It didn't go well."

"You were fashioning a necklace?" The white haired girl rose her eyebrows in amusement," Has this been a hobby of yours for long? It looks as if they've been completely pulverized. What went wrong?"

He bit his lip," Well, I can at least say I have a talent for smashing things in frustration..."

"So it seems...," Robin cocked her head in the direction of what looked like campfire remains," And what's that behind you? What are all those charred lumps?"

Chrom straightened up, trying to grasp for whatever pride he could muster," Those are...er, WERE hot dogs. I was trying to cook them. They got burned."

"That's putting it kindly..."

"Yeah, it didn't exactly pan out as I'd intended."

Robin tried hard not to giggle. She had almost forgotten how much of a dork her boyfriend was. After Emmeryn's death, he had become so much more serious. There was also taking responsibility over his younger sister and his two children, which was slowly taking a toll on him. He grew up too quickly," Huh. Well...I guess even the greatest of chefs burn things now and again...," She smiled gently," And I'll pretend I haven't noticed the collapsed sand castle or the half-built raft...And what is that? A bug-infested tropical fruit salad?" She couldn't hold back a giggle when Chrom's face turned the exact same shade of Cordelia's hair,"...I'll just ignore that too."

"That would probably be for the best," He gulped," Well, there's one more thing I want you to see. Now that it's done, I think it might've been a terrible idea, but..."

Robin grinned," Really? There's more? What is it this ti-" her eyes fell on a message inscribed in the sand," Oh my!"

The blue haired boy rubbed the back of his neck nervously," So...what do you think?"

"C-Chrom... Just look at this great big message in the sand...Chrom &amp; Robin 4 Ever," She tried extremely hard not to laugh," How did this...? Why would you...?"

"Does it make you happy?"

Robin chuckled," I...I don't know if I should be happy or confused or...what, exactly...," She reached out and took one of his hands in hers," But it's certainly a sight I'll never forget, I can promise you that."

The blue haired boy relaxed slightly at her touch," Then I'm glad. Maybe I didn't make you happy, but I at least helped you make a new memory."

She furrowed her eyebrow, his intentions slowly becoming more clear," Wait, Chrom...Is that what all this was about? The sand message, all the failed projects...It was all to help me make new memories?" The drum major felt guilt course through her," Oh no, this isn't about what I said earlier, is it? The fact that I can't remember anything doesn't bother me anymore, I swear!"

Chrom gently pulled her closer and wrapped his arm around her," I guess it wasn't as obvious as I'd hoped it would be, huh? I know that you didn't mean what you said before. Of course it bothers you that you don't have any memories from before we met. You can try to convince me that your dad was a bad man and that your life now is probably better than it was with him, but that doesn't mean that you don't want to remember at least some of that. It's just that...I wanted to make sure you were able to form at least a few happy memories here."

"Oh, Chrom...," She enveloped him into the warmest hug she could produce," Thank you. Thank you so much," Robin pulled her head away from his chest," But you didn't need to go to all this trouble. Just being with you has given me an endless supply of happy memories!"

"...It has?"

Robin nodded confidently," Of course! The day we first met...The first football game we performed at...That time you peeked in on me in the shower and I accidentally did the same to you...," She blushed," The day you confessed your love to me...I remember it all so vividly! I could never forget a single thing about you. Even if death were to tear us apart...Even if I lost my memories again..."

The boy tightened his grip on her possessively," Robin...Why would you even say such a thing?"

"What? I'm just speaking hypothetically. Why are you making that face?"

"Robin..."

The white haired girl watched as his gaze intensified ten-fold," Huh? What are you—?!"

Chrom cut her off by taking her face in his hands and passionately pressing his lips on hers. She couldn't hold back her surprised squeak, and she nearly pushed him away in shock. Instead, as soon as her hands pressed onto his chest, the kiss deepened. Robin felt her eyes close and her will slowly slip away. Just before it was fully gone, she grabbed back onto it and gathered the strength to creat some space between herself and her boyfriend," C-Chrom! Y-your lips...We shouldn't..."

Chrom would've been hurt if not for the flustered expression of his lover. A smirk played across his lips," Did you not enjoy that?"

Her eyes widened to the size of frisbees as she stumbled to find the right words," N-no, it was wonderful! But...we're in a public place!"

"No one else is here, love," Much to her horror (and pleasure), he pulled her even closer and closed the little space that she had created for herself," Prepare yourself; we've got plenty more memories to make."

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Olivia stood in the wings, trying to calm her nerves. Everyone that had auditioned were incredibly talented, and there was no way shed be able to stand a chance. She glanced back at Lon'qu, who was standing in the farthest corner he could fathom so that he would avoid the swarm of girls in tutus and tights waiting to audition. She giggled at his expression of pain as he desperately tried to ignore the duo of ballerinas attempting to hold a conversation with him. He caught her gaze and pleaded with his eyes for her to get him out of there. Before she could, someone from onstage called her name," Olivia...Plush?"

The pink haired girl grimaced at the atrocity that was her last name and meekly made her way onstage," Uh, p-present!"

The officials shared unimpressed looks, and she swore she could hear one murmur," Be prepared for a waste of time."

Suddenly, something cracked in Olivia. She was sick of being told who she could and could not be. She was tired of the kids in her class that weren't participating because of a scholarship like she was spreading rumors about what lengths she went through to get in the class. She was sick of her parents telling her that she would never amount to anything and doing everything in their power to make sure she didn't. But hearing these people that she didn't even know try and push her around was the last straw. Olivia straightened up and clearly announced," Hello. My name is Olivia Plush, and I will be performing a dance from the ballet of The Fountain of Dreams."

The song started out softly with a mysterious tune that seemed to quiet those who were whispering offstage. After a peaceful chime, the music picked up into an intense rhythm. Her body fell into a clockwork like mind-frame, and everything that she had been practicing day and night clicked into her place. Every movement had a meaning and a purpose. Her determination ensured that not a single dance was out of place.

Lon'qu had slipped away from the two teenagers and found himself entranced by Olivia. The passion she was exuding grabbed everyone in the theater, including himself. The usually stoic boy who avoided girls at any given cost couldn't pull his eyes off of her.

Everyone was so enraptured by her performance that they hardly realized it had ended. Olivia struck her final pose with such grace and control that it seemed like she was in a painting. Lon'qu was the first to break out of his trance and begin applauding, starting off slowly and gradually picking up more speed and enthusiasm. The other dancers and officials joined in quickly after, sharing just as much verve as the boy had.

The pink haired girl's face turned red as she politely bowed and made her way offstage. As soon as her feet hit the wings, she burst into a run, jumping straight into Lon'qu's arms," I did it! I-" realizing how close they were, she squeaked and scrambled off of him," Oh my gods, I'm so sorry!"

The boy, although a bit dazed, waved it off," I-It's no problem. You danced very well."

"Really?" She shuffled," Oh, I'm not sure..."

"Did you not hear their applause?" He smiled," You are obviously the best one here. I am honored to be able to attend this important moment in your future career. Thank you for allowing me to accompany you."

The girl blushed even darker," Oh, Lon'qu. I'm the one that should be thanking you! I don't think I would've been able to go out on that stage if it wasn't for your support-"

"So this is what you've been wasting all your time doing."

The pair flipped around, only to find a woman with grading pink hair pulled back into a tight bun standing before them. Olivia's face lost all the color it had once held," M-Mother? W-What are you d-doing here? How d-did you-"

"Stop stuttering, you stupid girl," Mrs. Plush reached forward and grabbed her daughter's wrist," What have your father and I been telling you? You'll never amount to anything with that horrendous stutter you have. How are you supposed to marry Dalen if you can't even speak correctly?"

The dancer tried to pull her arm back," I d-don't want to m-marry Dalen! I w-want to b-become a p-performer!"

"Bah! You're pathetic! Why couldn't you be like your other siblings? They're doctors!"

"You k-know I couldn't handle t-the p-pressure! I-I have a-anxiety!"

Her mother pursed her lips," That is the exact reason to why we're trying to marry you to Dalen! He's a doctor! He'll fix you," Lon'qu felt his temper flare up, but before he could step in, Mrs. Plush yanked her daughter towards the exit," We're going home, and once we get there, I am going to call your school and inform them that you will not be attending Ylisse High anymore. You're obviously not getting the education that suits you there. After that, we'll make a little trip to the dance studio where you will tell your instructor that you are giving up dancing-"

"No..."

The woman narrowed her eyes threateningly," What was that?"

With the confidence and angered that had fueled her dance earlier, Olivia exploded," NO! I will _not_ marry Dalen, I will _not_ drop out of school, and I will _never_ give up dance!" The look of shock on her mother's face gave her a feeling of satisfaction and resentment," What? Are you surprised that your daughter isn't the person you tried to make her be-"

Everything next happened in a blur; She felt a stinging sensation prickle across her cheek, accompanied by a sickening crack-like noise. All of the chatting done by the other dancers was brought down to a hush, and they all watched as Olivia slowly brought her hand up to her face. Had...had her mother just slapped her? Her eyes glossed over, the shock more painful than the actual assault," You are not my daughter," The woman growled.

The words hit her so hard that she almost collapsed. If it were not for the pair of comforting hands that held her up by her shoulders, she would've been the pitiful loser wailing on the ground that her mother thought she was. She glanced backward and felt her breath catch when she saw the look of fury in Lon'qu's eyes," Leave."

Mrs. Plush crossed her arms challengingly," What are you? A cop?"

"Funny you say that," He reached in his pocket and pulled out the badge to prove himself," Because I just so happen to be on the police force."

The woman's resolve crumpled as her eyes fell on his badge," You're with Basilio, aren't you? I-I can assure you that she deserved a knock to the head to straighten her out-"

"Don't make me repeated myself again," He grumbled, causing the woman to tense up even more than she had before.

"Fine. Have it your way," She turned back to Olivia," Just know that you are not welcome back into our household until give up this stupid dream of yours. We all make sacrifices; I wanted to be an author, but my mother made me see that I was foolish to think that was possible. I'm only doing what's best for you."

Her daughter didn't respond and kept her eyes on the ground, desperately trying to keep her resolve. Mrs. Plush rolled her eyes and smoothed her hair, making sure to send her child one last glance before disappearing out the door. As soon as she was out of sight, Olivia allowed her legs to give out and she crumpled onto the ground. The pink haired girl tried to muffle her sobs and buried her face in her hands, mortified by what she had just let happen.

Lon'qu glared at any of the other dancers that may have been staring at them, intimidating them to look the other way. Once he had given the girl the small amount of privacy that he could, he carefully bent down and scooped her in his arms. Everyone stepped out of their way and let the pair leave the theater without question.

As soon as they reached the car, he sat her on the hood and pulled her into a gentle hug. She stiffened in surprise and tried to pull away," Y-You don't l-like g-girls-"

He only held her tighter, refusing to let her fall into a deeper state of depression," You're the exception."

* * *

**Hehe, this chapter ended pretty heavily. So, I've hinted throughout this series that Olivia's family is super strict (explaining why she has anxiety, why she had to go home early during the football game, and why she was locked out of her house at night), but they have never been physically abusive up until this point. We will go deeper into the aftermath of this later in the story. On a lighter note, Chrobin was adorable today. I almost put the stargazing idea in there, but neither of them would probably know much about it. Hence the beach supports! Lucina is conflicted on whether or not she should accept Morgan because she doesn't know who he is. That was the most of what happened in this chapter today, it was just pretty drawn out. If I'm correct, we will have some new characters in the next chapter! YAY! Review time!**

**Amy47101:**** Is it funny that that was exactly how I pictured Ricken would say it? Haha, I love him so much. I can't wait to introduce him to Nah! I ran out of punny things to say so long ago. Haha, that's okay! One missed opportunity is another door opened (I think...)! Nope, Levy is not Priam's kid, but that is a good guess! They're both similar in personalities! That makes sense, Priam and Gajeel have similar hair. I'm sort of following along with the series without watching it, and it looks like things are slowly coming along! Thanks for commenting!**

**GoldenLightning:**** Yay, I'm glad you liked my chapter! The date was incredibly fluffy, which is something that they needed. It was sad to realize that Chrom has lost a lot of his dorkiness because of needing to grow up. Poor Chrom and Robin. I'm waiting for Lucina and _ to go on a date for dress shopping, because her daughter would want her opinion and advice. I will try my hardest, and it turns out that I have a free hour in school to do homework/writing in, so I should always be there to finish a chapter! Thank you for reviewing!**

**EcoMagic:**** I share a similar opinion in that, especially since you get them at the end of the game and can't use them anywhere. But, for the sake of this story, I'm actually keeping a majority of them in at least for a little bit (example; I didn't kill Gangrel because I wanted to add more to his character and ect). No one is coming back to life if they are dead, though. That is something impossible to reverse, and it makes angst less angsty. Yay! I'm glad you liked that chapter! I'm hoping to bring Virion in the story more, but I've got to get some stuff out of the way first (There are so many characters to keep track of, I often lose count of who I have to work with). I think that there will be some Virion in the camp chapters. You were spot on with your guesses (other than the stargazing that I couldn't fit in)! It was pretty creepy how well you read my mind. Thanks for commenting! **

**supersoldiers3:** **Well, that makes the year more interesting! The only teacher that is annoying me is my band teacher because I have to leave band early and he talks to entire time I'm there. He has also decided that we aren't going to festival this year, which is infuriating because I love color guard and want to go to districts! Sorry for ranting, I'm mad about that. Anyways, I'm really happy that you liked that chapter! I like them together, because at the end of the story, it says that the orphans in Libra's orphanage beg Panne to transform so that they can ride on her back! It's adorable! Date night was fun to write, and I'm super excited for Severa's entrance soon! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Guys, I think we're at 300 pages now! Woohoo! 3 more chapters, and this will officially be the longest thing I've ever written! I'm stoked! Thank you guys for reading, and I'm sure that my writing will improve because I'm in an acting class and learning cool things. I don't have much to say in this afterward, so I guess I'll see you guys next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	31. Chapter 31 Ambivalence and Justice

**Hey guys! Sorry this is on a Sunday. I hate having to use my weekend plan in order to post a chapter. I had a good reason to miss it though; I SAW NEWSIES! Long story short, Newsies is my absolute favorite musical in the entire world, and I have never seen it in person. I almost started crying, that's how happy I was! So, I was gone pretty much the entire day yesterday, sorry I didn't get to post. Anyways, the two new characters I've been promising make an appearance in this chapter, so buckle your seatbelts and prepare for the ride! Next week is the Halloween chapter!**

**I don't own Fire Emblem**

* * *

Today was the day Maribelle was finally going to confess her feelings. She had managed to sneak out of it the first week because of Lissa's confession to Henry, but eventually, her friend caught in and forced her into revealing herself by saying she'd do it for her if she didn't.

The blonde tried to force the butterflies away as she strutted up to Gregor's lunch table," Gregor? I wish to speak with you."

The foreign exchange student shared bewildered looks with his friends before standing up and following her out of the cafeteria. Maribelle kept a fast pace, hoping to create as much space between them and the other students. When she finally felt like she could breath, she halted to a stop," Alright. This may come across to you as a surprise, but I'm just going to say it anyways."

Gregor tilted his head in confusion," Why is beautiful Maribelle acting much more serious than usual?"

"I'm afraid I've been...lying to you, in a way."

"That is alright; Gregor lied about stopping his thievery. Gregor was hungry, you see-"

The blonde squeezed her eyes shut in irritation," Not like that, you buffoon! Do you honestly think I care about such trivial things like chocolate bars? If your thievery had struck that much of a nerve with me, I would've reported you to Mr. Warry eons ago! I let it go the first time because you treat me differently than other people do. It's odd, yet for some reason I like it. In conclusion, that is what I've been lying to you about, and I apologize for being unclear beforehand."

The boy crossed his arms slowly," So what Gregor is hearing is that Maribelle likes talking to Gregor?"

"Dear me, is that all you picked up from my confession?" She grimaced," I guess I should not have been so vague."

"D-Did Maribelle just say confession?!" He automatically straightened up and smoothed his hair," Does Maribelle finally share Gregor's feelings?"

The piccoloist tried to keep the upper hand in the conversation, but a blush creeped across her cheeks," Was I not clear?"

Without warning, Gregor wrapped his arms around the sophomore and spun her around blissfully," Haha, Gregor has finally won the heart of the fair maiden! Maribelle will be the happiest girl in the entire world! Gregor will make sure that he is perfect for the perfect girl!"

She was at a loss for words as bliss filled every being in her body. She wanted to cry in relief and laugh at the same time. Everything that she had been stressing over was just a memory now that she was positive he returned her feelings. Maribelle was a bit scared to enter her first relationship that wasn't set up by her parents, but at the same time, she was excited. What new experiences would she endure? It would be nice to have him at her side for when she needed someone the most," Oh Gregor," She smiled," You do not have to change for me. We'll be perfect for each other."

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Chrom didn't realize he had fallen asleep on the couch until he was awoken by the sound of the backdoor opening. He immediately shot up and grabbed the closest thing to him (which happened to be a lamp), aiming it at the shadowy figure that entered the house," Show yourself!"

There was a loud groan before a girl with olive colored pigtails stepped into the light and crossed her arms," Great, I got caught in the act."

He lowered his "weapon" slowly, but took note that this girl was around Lucina's age," What is a child like you doing here?"

"Child? I'm not a child, you oaf! We're practically the same age! I'm...Wait," She stepped closer and observed him with scrutinizing eyes," I'd remember that head of blue hair anywhere. You're Chrom, aren't you? You're Lucina's father."

That was enough assurance for him to fully lower the lamp back into it's place," That's right...And I suppose you came back here with my daughter?"

The teenager plopped onto the couch," Oh, good. Now I won't have to waste time explaining the situation," She titled her head and narrowed her eyes,"...Weird. I didn't think you'd be quite so funny looking."

"Hey, I'm not funny looking! I have a fan club-" He shook his defensive side away and observed the girl," So...why did you break into my house?"

"Isn't it obvious? You have the Fire Emblem, and my boss wants it."

The Fire Emblem? Chrom's face paled, unintentionally making himself think back to the last time someone tried to force him to give them the Fire Emblem. In a matter of seconds, his hands were back around the lamp and pointing it at her," My older sister died to protect the emblem, and there is no way I'm letting her sacrifice be wasted."

The olive haired girl rolled her eyes," Gawds, don't point that thing at me and act like I'm the bad guy. I only want it so that I can trade it in for a friend of mine that they've been holding captive."

Chrom stiffened, thinking back to the boy in the office that knew Lucina," What is your friend's name?"

"Why do you want to kn-"

"Answer me," He growled," I'm not playing around."

The girl stiffened, her eyes wandering from his shaking hands to the vein sticking out slightly in his forehead,"...Fine. Her name is Nah."

"Nah?" The blue haired boy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion," But Nah is staying with my girlfriend. Have you...actually seen this girl in captivation?"

The teenager stared at him for a long time before groaning and smacking her forehead," Dammit, how could I have been stupid enough to let them trick me?! Now I have to go find Cynthia and call off the heist."

"Wait, there's more of you?"

"Duh. I was only a distraction-"

She was cut off by a scream upstairs.

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If there was anything Cynthia learned from her father, it was how to be a thief. Sure, her mother had been extremely against it at the time, but it was a skill that kept her alive in a bad future. Although she much preferred not being a convict, there were certain situations that she wasn't given much of a choice.

This was one of those times.

The plan was simple; sneak into the house through the open window and search for the emblem while Severa distracted whoever may be awake. Everything seemed full-proof, and as soon as they got the trinket, they'd rescue Nah.

As soon as she heard the door click shut, she scaled the side of the house and heaved herself through the only open window. A musky smell immediately filled her nostrils as soon as she entered, causing her to gag. She must have been in Chrom's room...

...Wait a second. If she was in Chrom's room, why were there two beds with two different boys in it? Unable to contain her curiosity, she tiptoed over to one of the beds, slowly pulling the cover off of the boy's head. Cynthia was greeted by a head of eerily familiar blue hair. Was this Chrom? No, this boy looked much smaller and younger than their leader did when he was their age. She carefully pulled the blankets lower, despite the voice in her head that screamed she shouldn't, and peeked at the boy's face.

No. It wasn't possible. He was dead. Cynthia was so shocked that she jolted away, accidentally knocking into a desk and causing a pile of books to crash onto the floor. The blue haired boy shot awake, desperately looking to find the intruder. When his eyes fell on her, he titled his head in confusion," Who are you?"

The redhead screamed and hugged her knees to her chest, desperately trying to ignore the person who she had let die. It was her fault! She shouldn't have let him go after them! She should've told Noire or Laurent so that they'd bring him back! Why had she promised to keep his rescue mission a secret? If she had told someone, he still would've been alive!

Tears started streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably as she tried to soothe her worst fears. Had Grima brought him back to life somehow? No, that was impossible! Did someone go back in time to save him? That would create a paradox! Cynthia's body wracked with sobs as she tried to un-see her best friend's corpse.

Morgan stared at the girl in bewilderment, ultimately deciding that she must have been from the same future that Lucina was from, because everyone he met from there started crying when they first saw him. This girl, though, was reacting a lot more deeply than most of them. Without a second thought, he got on his knees and tried to rub the girl's shoulder. Much to his shock, though, she yanked her arm away and staggered backwards as far as she could," S-Stay away from me!"

The blue haired boy jerked back, her words hitting him like a smack to the face. Lucina didn't act like that at all when he tried to comfort her. Before he could give it deeper thought, their bedroom door slammed open, and a olive haired girl swiped the lights on," Cynthia?! What's wrong?!"

"M-Morgan!"

Her eyes flicked to where her partner in crime was motioning, and in a matter of milliseconds, she was pointing a gun at him. Although she was trying to put up a tough exterior, it was plain to see the fear etched in her eyes," Who the hell are you?!"

The fourteen year old was too scared to know how to respond," I d-don't know-I mean, my name I Morgan, but-" He squeaked when the olive haired girl started fiddling with the trigger," Please don't kill me!"

Owain, who had been sleeping, was pulled from his dream when he heard his cousin shouting," Whazzagoinon?"

"That's enough!" The trio turned around to find Chrom, who had ripped the weapon out of Severa's hands," What the hell do you think you're doing?! Don't you recognize Morgan?!"

"He's dead! I saw him die with my own two eyes! This...thing is a fake!" The teenager proclaimed," Now give me back my gun before he turns out to be a Grimleal member!"

"That is my son you're talking about, not an object!" His gaze darkened considerably, causing the usually smug girl to shrink," Say things like that to my family again and you'll wish you were a part of the Grimleal."

"Father?" Lucina rubbed her eyes sleepily, being followed in by her roommate, Noire," What's going on? I heard shouting-" She stopped mid sentence when she saw who else was in the room," Severa? Cynthia? What are you doing here? Why is Cynthia crying?"

The olive haired girl pointed an accusing finger at Morgan," Who the hell is that?!"

The trumpet player quieted and silently snuck glances over at the terrified fourteen year old," I...I don't really know."

If hearing it from a stranger was bad enough, hearing it from his sister was a billion times worse. Morgan felt his world that he had managed to somewhat piece together shatter, leaving him all alone. If Lucina didn't know him and his parents didn't know him, was he really who he thought he was? The boy pulled his knees to his chest and fought the urge to cry.

Chrom jutted his jaw out angrily," Alright, that's it. Everyone, go down in the living room so that we can discuss what we know calmly and maturely. Now," The kids didn't need to be told twice; Severa glared at the "father" and grabbed Lucina's arm to drag her downstairs. Noire and Owain coaxed Cynthia from her fetal position and guided her to the living room. Chrom was about to follow them when he heard a sniffle," Morgan? Come on, we don't want to keep them waiting."

His son forced on his brightest smile," I'll be down in a few minutes, Chrom. Go on and join them. You don't need to worry about me."

The older boy furrowed his eyebrows," Obviously I have to worry if you called me by my first name," Chrom slid down onto the ground next to the freshman-to-be and nudged him gently," I wouldn't take what that Severa character said seriously. I think she's all talk."

"I know, but it's not just that," Morgan let out a shuddery sigh," That girl, Cynthia, didn't want me to touch her, much less be near her. The older one said that I was a...a thing! To make it even worse, Lucina admitted that she doesn't know who I am!" He hugged himself tightly," What if I'm not who I think I am? What if I actually did something really bad and that's why everyone cries when they see me? Dad, who am I?"

The blue haired boy frowned and opened his arm for Morgan," Come here," His son eagerly leaned into his embrace, tilting his head on his dad's shoulder," Your mom was a lot like you when we first met, you know. Both of you were very lost in a world you didn't know, but you both decided to put on a brave face so that you wouldn't make others around you worried or sad. It's things like that that assure me that you are who you think-"

"You don't get it dad!" He burst," You have no proof that I'm your child! Heck, I can't even remember you! Lucina said she didn't know who I was, which means that I...," He squeezed his eyes shut," What if I am Grimleal? What if they sent me to kill you and mom?! What if-"

"Morgan, listen to me," Chrom shifted his son so that he was looking him in the eye," I don't care if you are Grimleal or a Shepherd from the future. You are my son, and you always will be. Understand?"

The fourteen year old managed a watery smile and lunged forward to hug the older boy," And you'll always be my dad. I love you."

He rubbed his son's hair adoringly, wondering how the other future children could even fathom doubting his sweet little boy," I love you too, Morgan."

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The air in the living room was so thick that you could cut it with a knife; Severa sat at the edge of the couch, glaring daggers at Morgan. Lucina, who had been forced by her friend to sit by her, kept her gaze in the ground. Noire sat on the other side of the blue haired girl and fiddled with her hands, while Owain had already fallen asleep again. That left Cynthia and Morgan to sit on the stools by the counter.

"So...who are you?" Morgan tilted his head towards Cynthia in surprise as she continued meekly," Because my best friend used to look a lot like you...and he shared your name..."

The blue haired boy bit his lip, debating how he should answer. Eventually, he decided to go with his gut," I am Morgan. I'm just not sure I'm the Morgan you know."

The fifteen year old hiccuped," What do you mean?"

"I woke up two weeks ago with amnesia, and all I can remember from before then is hanging out with my mother and...," He shuddered,"...the gunshots."

Cynthia solemnly stared at him for a few seconds," Our Morgan was killed by a bullet. I wasn't there, but...I could've stopped you-I mean, him," She whispered the last part, glancing warily over at Lucina," It's my fault he's dead."

Now he understood why she reacted to him the way she did; she blamed herself for his apparent death. He cautiously reached out and settled his hand on her shoulder," Look, I know that I may not be the Morgan you all know and love, but I do know that he wouldn't want you to feel guilty. I sure don't!"

The ginger blinked a few times in surprise before letting her eyes gloss over," And I know that, whether you are the Morgan I know or not, you need some friends," She sniffled and placed a cheery smile on," We can reform the Justice Cabal!"

"Did someone say Justice Cabal?" Just like that, Owain was wide awake," Hark, fellow members of righteousness! We have reunited for the first time in many a month! Finally, our trio of courageous heroes can protect the people of our city as a group again!"

The three started in excitement, unaware of the older blue haired boy watching them in the doorway with a grin on his face. Maybe, if Cynthia and Owain were able to accept Morgan for who he was, the others would warm up to the idea. It would just take some patience on their part," Alright," He cleared his throat, making his presence noticed by everyone in the room," I know your names, but I don't know who your parents are. Now, for the sake of secrecy if you wish to keep it, you can tell me only one of your parents. I just need to know what to do with you."

"What do you mean by that?" Severa questioned suspiciously.

"Unfortunately, this house has reached its maximum capacity and we need to find somewhere for you to go," He carried on before she could interrupt him," Don't worry; we won't put you anywhere that isn't safe."

The olive haired girl stared at him for a long time, evaluating if he was telling the truth or not. Finally, she gave in," Fine, but I'm only telling you who my dad is! I don't want you to further compromise my parents relationship," She crossed her arms huffily before simply stating," I'm Stahl's daughter."

The words flew past him like a blast of wind, leaving him pale and speechless. How could someone as kind and friendly as Stahl raise someone as negative as Severa? Was that even possible, or did he just die way before she'd be able to remember him," A-Are you sure?"

"What is that supposed to mean?!"

Chrom grimaced," Nevermind. What about you, Cynthia? Who are your parents?"

The ginger beamed proudly," I'm Sumia's child! Everyone says that we look a lot alike, other than our hair color. I get that from my dad!"

"Hmm...Now that you mention it, you do look a lot like Sumia, aside from your bright...orange...," He titled his head, observing the all too familiar color. The only person in the school with hair that vibrant of a shade was...Gaius. His eyes widened in realization, and he couldn't help but feel relieved that they would most likely end up together. He chuckled, thinking of how much that would make Robin's blood boil," Well, I'll see what I can do. Cynthia, your mother isn't in a relationship yet, so it wouldn't be a good idea for you to stay with her yet. Severa, your parents are together, but-"

"You don't know that!" She interrupted," I never told you who my mom is!"

Chrom pressed his lips together in slightly annoyance," Your mother is obviously Cordelia. I can tell because-"

"You figured out because you know I hate you for using my mom after dad died!"

"No, it's because you look like-" He froze, slowly turning to face the girl in horror," What?! I...I would never...I wouldn't dream of-"

She groaned," Of course you'd think of it that way! You used her to help fight the Grimleal, dummy!"

"Well, I'm exhausted!" Lucina yawned, silently trying to get her dad to stop bickering with her friend," Severa, Cynthia, you guys can sleep in Noire and I's room."

"Cynthia can sleep in my room," Morgan offered," It'll be a tight squeeze if there's four of you in one place. She can sleep in my bed and I'll sleep in a sleeping bag."

The fifteen year old shook her hands bashfully," Oh no, you don't have to-"

"I insist!"

A light shade of pink dusted over the girl's cheeks as she nodded, giving him the okay. Chrom let his shoulders sag in relief," Good, I'm glad we've got that figured out for now. Like Lucina said, its getting late. Off to bed."

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"What do you mean more kids came?"

Chrom rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly as his girlfriend glared at him," They tried to rob our Fire Emblem because someone had threatened to hurt Nah if they didn't."

"That makes no sense; we have Nah," Robin pointed out.

"I know, so I told them that and cleared everything up. There's a bit more the the story involving Morgan, but I'll tell you more about that when we're in private," He explained, motioning to the bustling halls filled the the brim with tired students," But for now, we have to worry about the Halloween camp and State."

The white haired girl blew a stubborn piece of hair out of her face," Fine, but I want you to tell me everything. We're in this together," Robin leaned closer to him and wrapped her arm around his waist, having him wrap his arm around her shoulder in return," So, what exactly do you do at a Halloween camp anyways?"

He grinned," The same thing you'd do at any other camp, but we always tell the creepiest ghost stories and usually have a game of hard-core truth or dare. It'll be a ton of fun-"

"I was under the impression that your girlfriend had purple hair, Mr. Leige," The couple paused their conversation and directed their attention to the man who had accused him; Walhart. When he realized that he had mistaken the two boys, he placed an apologetic smile on," Excuse me, Mr. Exalt. I mistook you for someone else."

Chrom shrugged nonchalantly," It's no problem. My own girlfriend thought that Cobalt was me the first day he transferred here."

"Your girlfriend, hmm?" Walhart directed his gaze to Robin, who waved shyly," I don't believe we have met, my dear. What is your name?"

"I'm Robin Doe," She held out her hand to shake his," It's nice to meet you."

Instead of reciprocating the gesture, he stared at her hand. After a few seconds of holding it out, she coughed awkwardly and tried to pull it away, only for the man to grab her wrist and observe it," Why are you wearing gloves?"

Chrom felt his heart drop into his stomach; how did this man pick up on that so fast? While he was scrambling to find an answer, Robin was one step ahead of him," My hands get cold really easily. Is it against the dress code?"

"Not that I know of," The principal murmured suspiciously,"...yet."

The white haired girl frowned, trying to keep her facade up," Oh dear, that will be a problem with winter coming up. Still, you are the one in charge here. Just make sure to tell me if there is a change in the student handbook, okay?"

"You'll be the first one I come to," He promised, but Chrom couldn't help but notice the dark glimmer in his eyes. It was the same look he used on that poor Inigo boy that disappeared. The blue haired boy unknowingly pulled his girlfriend closer," Well, this was a nice chat. I hope you two enjoy your day."

The pair waited until the man was completely gone to release their breath," Gods, how did he pick that up so quickly? What if he asks someone in band about your hand? What if he turns you in to the police, or even worse, the Grimleal?! What if-"

"Chrom, calm down," Robin cooed, taking his face in her hands," I'll start to cover it with makeup. He also can't conduct an investigation until he bans gloves from school, which may take weeks to months to do," She smoothed his cheeks with her thumbs," I'll be fine."

"How can you guarantee that?" He worried," I can't do this without you. I don't know what I'd do if they took you away, or..."

She sighed and moved her hands back around his waist so that she was hugging him," You see? That's the very reason I'm not afraid. I've got you to look out for me, remember?"

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Nah was having a tough time adjusting to middle school. It was hard enough that people always mistook her as a sixth grader instead of an eight grader, but they also underestimated her knowledge. They figured that since she looked so young and joined school so late that she'd be an idiot. Stupid middle schoolers.

The auburn haired girl huffed as she waited in the bathroom, purposely skipping band in order to regain her bearings. It wasn't like she was being bullied, but everyone was just so...so...she squeezed her eyes shut, desperately wishing that she was back at the Exalt's house hanging out with Morgan and Owain.

Maybe she could run away and find Gerome again. He wouldn't make her go to school alone. Sure, he was cold and didn't talk much, but he was the closest person to a family that she had. She pulled a scrap of paper from her binder and began scribbling a note explaining where she was and slid it in her pocket, prepping to leave the bathroom when the door burst open," Ooh, you're the little girl we're looking for!"

Nah groaned when she heard the words little girl," It takes one to know one...," She grumbled, motioning to the green haired girl's size and stature.

"Ha-hah! It may look that way, but I'm actually quite old," She straightened up and proudly stated," I'm a senior!"

"Oh? Well you don't look it-Wait," She gasped in realization," Are you Nowi?"

Nowi beamed," Wow, nice guess!"

The auburn haired girl didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or pout. Her mother was finally in front of her, but she couldn't tell her who she was. Instead, she settled on a simple," It IS you!"

The older girl nodded," Alright, I've told you my name. Now you tell me yours."

"Nah."

Nowi crossed her arms childishly," Oh, come on, why not?!"

The eight grader groaned and rubbed her temples irritably. This always happened. It happened when she introduced herself to Chrom, and it even happened with Morgan! She took a deep breath and tried to explain it in the simplest manner she could think of," No, NAH. N-A-H. That's my name."

The green haired girl let out a low whistle," That's a confusing name..."

Nah crossed her arms huffily and muttered," And whose fault is that?" As soon as she realized what she had accidentally implied, she squeaked and flattened her hands to either side of her body.

Nowi didn't take any notice of the girl's nerves," How the heck should I know? Anyway, the rest of the band is waiting for you. Let's get you out of here!"

The fourteen year old held up her hands in defeat," Of fine, After you-, Before she could finish, Nowi grabbed her hand and spun the two of them around in excitement," What are you doing?" Nah sputtered.

"You looked like you needed a bit of fun in your life!" She hopped up and down a few times until she remembered her mission," Oh yeah! Come on, let's go!"

As much as Nowi's upbeat personality contrasted with Nah's serious one, she couldn't help but feel lighter than she could ever remember. She had done it; she had finally met her mother. Her eyes glossed over slightly, and she had to try extremely hard to keep the tears of joy in," A-Alright."

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**Severa and Cynthia join the scene! Honestly, I didn't have much of this chapter planned at all. I almost introduced the two of them by having them run into Stahl and Cordelia on their first date. After some thought, I realized that that was too out of character for Severa, because she was super blunt with introducing herself. In the end, I settled for Chrom meeting them first, especially since they can't really meet their parents at the moment. Poor Morgan. I felt bad with the way he was treated in this chapter. He's such a sweetheart, though, and I can't wait to write some Justice Cabal! Maribelle and Gregor finally got together! It was hard to find a spot to fit them in, and before I knew it, it had been around five or so chapters after Lissa made her promise to confess. Oops. Walhart is suspicious of Robin, and Chrom is freaking out because he doesn't want her to disappear like Inigo did. Nowi and Nah also got a cute little moment in there! Review time (Holy cow, so many of you reviewed this time. I love it!)! **

**BubbleTea-chan:** **So much fluff indeed! I like to balance out my serious stuff with cute moments so that it's not to cliche or boring. I believe that I have five more children (give or take) to introduce. Two of them won't show up for awhile, but the others won't take that long. I'll probably bring those three in a group, like I did with Cynthia and Severa. Thank you for reviewing!**

**potatoman098:** **Thank you! I've always thought that that support was adorable! I actually wanted the entirety of the Shepherds to go, but I didn't have time for that in this story. Oh well. I can make it a one-shot after I finish the story (if I'm not sick by it at that point, lol). That would be pretty weird, but I'm pretty sure that everyone understood that they were siblings. Thank you! I'm super proud of myself! Thank you for commenting!**

**Golden-Lightning:** **Hehe, there is another thing that they will have to go through before (possibly) getting together. This chapter was tough to write for some reason, but the next one should (hopefully) be easier to produce. I feel horrible for both Lucina and Morgan; they just need to love each other! The beach was fun to write, because it was how they acted at the beginning of the story when neither of them had problems to worry about (ish). I'm not sure how Inigo will finally introduce himself to his parents, but I think I know what I want to do with him. It's weird not writing him anymore, because he was so prominent in a few chapters. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Amy47101: **** Yay! I also like both couples very much (just like how I really like both SumiaxGaius and SumiaxHenry). Oh my goodness, you are flattering me so much! I happen to agree, especially with something like fire emblem where nothing is cannon. I am open to all couples accept extremely weird ones like LissaxGregor (not like I can complain much about that; I set Maribelle up with him, and she's not much older than her). I think that I put more into writing OliviaxLon'qu because they are my OTP (other than Chrobin) in this game. I adore my feroxi babies too much! I totally understand having a busy schedule, mine is just starting to pick up. Adorable Chrom is fun to write. I miss having things lighthearted. Ah well. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Hylianshepherd:** **Thank you! Olivia is adorable to write, and I really like comparing how she acts with other people in comparison to how she acts with Lon'qu. Plus, she finally stood up for herself! I tried not to make her mom too evil (she only wanted what was best for her daughter), but I couldn't have her be hunky-dorie and accepting of everything after forcing her not to go for years on end. Thank you for reviewing!**

**supersoldiers3:** **Yup! I love colorguard (not this year though. That's a whole other rant I think I brought up last week, so I'm not going to delve to deep into it), but I usually play the oboe (oboe's cannot march). I like trombone players; they're always very friendly from what I know! Haha, I know what you mean; when I find a long fanfic that I really like, I binge read it in order to catch up. I adore Chrobin so much, and there will definitely be more fluff for them in the camping chapter (though that will mainly be fluff in general). I really liked writing Olivia's character development in the last chapter, and I am patiently waiting for the couple to finally get together. You guessed right! We got our pegasus daughters in! That's cool! What does bear meat taste like? Thanks for reviewing! **

**MissShane12:**** I'm so glad you liked it! The Chrobin was adorable, and the Olivi'qu was intense. Poor Olivia, her family doesn't support her whatsoever. At least she has her friends to help her get back on her feet! Oh my, I made you tear up? Goodness, I don't know if I've ever had that reaction before. Did I make you feel bad? I hope not. Thank you for reviewing! **

**EcoMagic:**** Yay, I'm happy that you enjoyed it! I was surprised too, you must be really good at reading the hints I dropped! Yeah, I feel really bad for Olivia. I'm a horrible person because I'm ruining all of these characters' lives. Lon'qu is a big sweetheart on the inside, and no one is able to convince me otherwise. The Summer Scramble DLC was too adorable of a potential first date to pass up! There was so much fluff that I could've mistaken it for lamb (god, that was a horrible joke). I elaborated a bit more on Morgan's side of the situation in this chapter, and I felt horrible for him. Poor guy feels alone in the world because his own sister doesn't recognize him. Thank you for reviewing!**

**YourBrother:** **Don't you already have an account? Why didn't you just use that to respond? I doubt your reading this, but thanks! If it makes you feel better, this story often takes prescience over homework if I have a choice. Haha, you've told me about my email spam of this story. Sorry not sorry. Thanks for reviewing!**

**Sorry that this chapter was somewhat short. It was tough to write and find time to write for. I don't have much else to say, other then that the Halloween camp chapter is next week! Be prepared for cute and not so cute stuff! Thanks for reading!**

**-uprisingdragon**


	32. Chapter 32 Hallow's Eve

**Hey guys! This chapter took a really long time to write, but most of that came from me having to make up two ghost stories. There is also another part in this chapter that was originally different until I actually wrote it. We've got a ton of characters in this chapter (and a ton of fluff and action) so get ready for a semi-wild ride! Before I start, I also got inspiration for Gaius's story from another story about a smiling man. It was pretty creepy, so if you like that kind of thing, go look it up! Alright, that's about it! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

Even the most studious Shepherds could not patiently await the weekend; Lissa and Maribelle had already packed a week ahead of time, Gaius and Henry were looking up the creepiest stories they could produce, and Virion was practicing his pick up lines so that he would be able to "woo" the ladies.

Then there was Noire.

Sure, she knew how to survive a post apocalyptic world, but camping with a group of thirty or so children to look after was going to be a challenge. Once the reality of the situation finally hit her, she began binge reading on anything and everything about camping. Instead of progressively feeling more confident about her newly found skills, stress began to eat away at her. If she failed this, she failed her parents, and she couldn't bear to have her father treat her the same way her mother did.

Eventually, her time for preparation came to an end, and she was forced to pack up the little amount of things she had and pack Frederick's car with Emmy, Owain, Cynthia, and Severa (Tharja insisted that the two girls go along, but Noire knew it was only because her mother wanted some alone time with her family), while Chrom took Lissa, Lucina, and Morgan. The two cars traveled to the parking lot where the designated drivers waited to fill their cars with students so that the band could carpool to their destination.

Robin switched into Chrom's car to help him navigate (or so they told everyone), Lissa and Lucina switched out with Cynthia and Owain, then Lissa traded again so that she could be in the same car as Maribelle.

The other chaperone, Priam, didn't look nearly as stressed as Noire was; In fact, he was already donning a plaid shirt and hiking boots, telling stories to whoever would listen about his superior camping skills. That both reassured and worried Noire, because sometimes she would catch him saying something that didn't make sense.

Once everyone had a car to ride in and a tent assigned to them, they set off to Farfort's camping grounds. The trip included many wrong turns and an eventual agreement to kick Chrom out of his leadership and have Cherche, who was the best with directions, take the lead. That turned out to be the right decision, because they finally reached the campsite within an hour.

All of the kids immediately set off to start their own activities, leaving Noire and Priam to try and look after them all. Most of the stuff they were doing, including things like fishing and charades, were acceptable, but when Virion informed the leaders that he was going to steal a canoe for some romantic endeavor, Noire put her foot down.

Well...she tried to put her foot down.

"Uh, I don't th-think that you should-"

"Don't be such a buzzkill, Nellie," Priam roped his arm over the aqua haired boy's shoulders and whispered," I know just the place to find one-"

The brown haired girl was taken slightly aback," But...um...w-won't that get us in t-trouble? And m-my name is N-Noire, not N-Nellie."

"Really? You don't sound too sure of that," Priam winked at her before clapping Virion on the back and supposedly leading him to where he could steal a canoe. The nineteen year old watched him saunter away in shock, which quickly formed into annoyance. Who did he think he was?! If he wanted to act like he knew everything, why didn't he just take charge? She kicked a nearby tree angrily, cursing when the needle-like sensation of pain prickled through her toes. This weekend was already off to a bad start.

It didn't get much better as the day went on. Whatever Noire said, Priam seemed to disagree with. It got so bad that some of the Shepherds started to pick which councilor to listen to. All of the future children had Noire's back, but most of the boys in the band preferred Priam's laissez faire style of leading. By the end of the day, pretty much everybody was frustrated.

The constant disagreements between the two leaders were put on hold for dinner, in which the students had their choice of either roasting hot dogs over the fire or eating a fresh salad. Once dinner was over, some of the younger band students retired to their tents, but all of the original Shepherds, of course, stayed for the best part of Halloween Camp; ghost stories.

Since there were no logs or chairs to sit on, everyone brought out spare blankets or sleeping bags to sit on. Chrom immediately took note that Robin (who knew little to nothing about camping) was chilly, so he took the blanket he had and wrapped it around the two of them. Ricken noticed that what his role model did looked entirely romantic, so he took his blanket and opened it for Nowi to snuggle into. The senior, who was more used to her boyfriend being playful and a bit nervous, literally leapt at this chance by jumping into his arms.

Stahl, being the slightly oblivious person he was, didn't take notice of the cuddling done by his friends. Cordelia, on the other hand, wanted to have the same experience that all the other girls were having, so she settled for snuggling into her boyfriend's side. Luckily for her, he responded eagerly and wrapped both of his arms around her. Lissa had a similar problem with Henry, who was still mentally preparing his ghost story. After staring at him for a good three or four minutes, she gave up, only to have him finally take notice and go as far as to pull her on his lap," Don't want you to feel unsafe while listening to stories," He confirmed with a hint of a blush on his face. Lissa only giggled and cuddled deeper into his arms.

Several others followed suit; Cherche wrapped Kellam's jacket around her tighter and leaned her head on his shoulder, Gregor and Maribelle were shyly holding hands, Panne was already asleep against Libra, Anna managed to rope Hewitt into letting her lie her head on his lap, and even Donnel and Bryony seemed to gravitate towards each other.

While the snuggling session seemed like a good idea for the couples, it made some of the other campers feel a bit more than uncomfortable. Vaike groaned at every mushy thing he saw, but jokingly opened his arms for Lon'qu to climb into. The boy threw a stick perfectly in between his eyes instead and went back to his conversation with Olivia. Virion tried to coax Sully into his arms, but the girl took her boot off and whacked him in the face with it. Sumia kept awkwardly clearing her throat and inching closer to Gaius and farther from her lovey-dovey friends. With the awkward romantic tension Say'ri was getting from her friends, she decided to shift her attention to Tiki and uphold a conversation with her. Priam and Noire didn't notice most of the PDA because they were too busy glaring at each other.

The children were a mixed bunch when seeing their parents together. Like usual, Lucina was ogling over how romantic her parents were while Severa complained about how gross hers were acting. Owain spared one glance to his parents before turning red in the face and turning back to the Justice Cabal, who had hit it off very well in the car ride and have been inseparable since. Nah and Emmy decided to hang out together, along with Hadlee, due to the lack of other people to talk and interact with; both of them pretended to be disturbed by their parents, but they secretly loved watching them so close.

Once everyone was finally settled, the ghost stories started. As per tradition, the drum majors each had to start the round of ghost stories with one themselves. Chrom's story wasn't scary at all, just disturbing. He told his tale about a town full of cannibals that pretended tube a vacation hotspot so that they could lure tourists in and eat them. Robin, who was completely unaware of this tradition, had to make up a story on the spot. It turned out to be surprisingly better than Chrom's, but it still wasn't that scary. Her tale was about a woman who had lost their child, and after long years of searching, she finally gave up and took her own life in the process. The ghost of the mother is said to still wander around "these very grounds" looking for her daughter.

A few other people tried to frighten the campers by telling their own stories, only to have them be just about as scary (or less, in Ricken's case) than Chrom and Robin's. In a twist turn of events, Kellam's story was the most terrifying, but many suspected that was only because they didn't figure out that it was not a ghost telling it until the end.

"Alright, alright," Gaius finally spoke up," These stories might scare a small child, but I've got one that'll make you pee your pants."

"Yup!" Henry added on," I have a tale that will knock your socks off! So we better start so that we don't leave you hanging, Nya ha!"

The ginger rolled his eyes," I promise there won't be any more horrible puns in my story," He cleared his throat, making sure that he had the attention of everyone before starting," Have you ever heard the story of the Smiling Man?"

"You mean Henry?" Vaike joked, earning several glares and shushes.

Although he tried to ignore the joke, Gaius couldn't help but chuckle," No, Henry is the Smiling Boy, but that's a whole other story," He started weaving the horrifying tale of a small town that he claimed wasn't that far from the campsite. He went on to explain a story about a boy who had gotten out of work late and was walking home. On his way, he came across a seemingly drunk man with over-exaggerated movements. The closer he got, the larger his sickening smile became. As soon as the man saw his face, he tried to turn around and make a run for it, but somehow, he found himself facing the same direction as before. Every time he tried to escape, the smiling man would come closer and closer. The man, now lead by horrifying panic, tried to escape one last time, only to find himself face to face with the smiling man.

The terrifying person tilted his head devilishly before simply stating," _Don't be scared; I only want to make you smile._"

The boy was found the next morning with several stab wounds. Upon further inspection, they also found that all of the bones in his arms and legs had been broken, making them have a limp, rubber like consistency. The worst part, though, was that his mouth torn wide open in the shape of a twisted smile.

"People still say they see the smiling man, and the only way to escape is to not let him sense your fear," Gaius smirked, watching the petrified campers watch him with anticipation," If he can feel your unease, he will assume you are unhappy and...fix it."

The silence was almost unbearable; the couples who had previously been cuddling were holding each other for their dear lives, op and those who weren't with a significant other drifted by someone who they found comfort in. The eerie stillness was interrupted by a high pitched laugh from Henry that caused nearly everyone to jump out of their skins," You think that that story was scary? Ha!"

"W-Wait, you're s-saying that y-your s-story is e-even c-creepier?" Olivia whimpered.

"Of course! My story is ten times scarier because it's real," Henry chuckled," This is not a story for the faint hearted. If you were shaken up by Gaius's warm up story, then you'd better get going."

The ginger bit harder on his lollypop," You're calling that a warm up story?" Instead of becoming angry like most of the camp was expecting him to, he leaned back and smirked," Alright. This better be good then."

"Seven years ago, a pair of siblings decided to run away after enduring a lifetime of abuse from their parents. The older sister was fifteen at the time, old enough to get a part time job. Her younger brother, though, was only ten years old. He couldn't do much but look after their makeshift home while she was away to make sure hobos didn't steal from us. One day, the girl came home acting really strangely. She told her brother that starting tomorrow, she was going to try and find him a nice family to live with. The avoided all of the questions he asked her, only answering with _It's what's best for you."_

"When is the story going to get as horrifying as you promised?" Gaius interrupted lazily.

Henry only chuckled for an answer and continued," That night, the younger brother heard a crash coming from his sister's room. He rushed up as fast as he could and shakily pressed his ear up to the door, trying to calm himself by hearing his sister's steady breathing. When he couldn't pick up the sound, he decided that desperate times called for desperate measures and opened the door," The white haired boy's happy-go-lucky attitude suddenly turned frightfully dark," He had hardly opened it up a crack when the weight of his sister's decapitated head pushed it open wide enough so that it could roll out at his feet."

Just like that, Gaius's smirk dropped off of his lips. A surprised gasp found its way out of some of the campers mouths, and some of the people shuffled closer to their partners. Henry smiled in satisfaction at the reaction that got and continued," By the point, it was too late for the little boy to run away, because the door opened even wider than before, revealing five dark figures. None of them had faces, just pools of black underneath the hoods of their ebony robes. Each of them held a different weapon, most of them being rusted and dripping in blood; There was a machete, a whip, an axe, a razor, and the leader seemed to be holding a mace of sorts. They all stared down at the boy, their intentions for him hidden by their cowls. A part of him wanted to run so badly, but where was he to go now that his sister was gone? The one with the mace murmured something in an unrecognizable language, earning several nods from his cohorts. Without warning, the mace was slammed into the ten year old's stomach, knocking him into a puddle of his sister's blood. Their punishments for the siblings continued throughout the night, torturing the boy until he couldn't feel the pain anymore. They disappeared with the sunrise, leaving the bloodied boy with his sister's corpse."

Sumia, who had shuffled her spot so that she was almost hiding behind Gaius, squeaked," D-Did they g-get caught?"

"Of course they did," Henry responded almost bitterly," The police beat them to it the first day and hospitalized the boy, but every night, he would wake up with one of the figures looming over him, and every morning, he would wake up with a new scar. At first, he insisted to the nurses that the reapers were still coming for him, but they were starting to become convinced that he was insane. Instead of letting him leave, they kept him locked up there, convincing even the boy that he was losing his mind. After years of medication, they finally let him out, unaware of the monster that had brewed inside of him and the reapers that still haunted his dreams," The white haired boy grimaced," Once you see them, they never let you out of their sight. In any other situation, the boy was lucky to be alive. That's what others would think," Henry's eyes fell on the ground," But it was a fate far worse than death for many years, because even though the reapers weren't physically there, they never stopped haunting him."

Everyone fell silent for a few seconds, waiting with bated breath to see if that was the resolution the story had. After what seemed like an eternity of stillness, Gaius finally spoke up," That story really did live up to my expectations."

"We can tell," Vaike commented slyly, wiggling his eyebrows for emphasis.

The redhead quirked his head in confusion, only to have it bump against someone else's. Once it full set in that he was holding someone, and that that someone was Sumia, he jumped all the way to Timbuktu with his face the same exact shade as a fire hydrant," Gods, I didn't realize-Shit, I didn't think that-" Almost as if someone flicked a switch inside of him, Gaius settled back into his smug persona," What, were you surprised?"

Sumia's face burned even brighter than the boy's had, so she buried her face in her hands, hoping to hide away from Robin's glare. The campers chuckled in response, but the actions of her two friends suddenly inspired Cordelia," Hey, it's about time we play some truth or dare."

At the sound of the suggestion, Noire perked right back up," Y-You can play, but you n-need to make s-sure that no one g-gets hurt, m-mentally or physically."

"That just takes all of the fun right out of it," Priam remarked, earning several glares from the future children," I say that-"

"I agree with Noire," Robin interrupted," Haven't you ever heard that old saying? _It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt_."

The blue haired man sent a desperate look to Chrom, who shrugged weakly in response. Typical; he was siding with his girlfriend," Fine, but when this game turns into a gossip circle, don't put the blame on me."

Cordelia nodded cheerfully," Goodie! I'll start," She scanned the circle carefully, knowing that she couldn't start with the victim she had in mind. After a few seconds of searching, her eyes finally fell on her first target," Bryony, truth or dare?"

The purple haired girl jumped, surprised that out of everyone, she was picked first," Uh...truth?"

"How do you feel about about Donnel?"

The words hit her like a sack of bricks. Oh no. No, no, no, no, no! She couldn't tell him now! What if he didn't like her back? What if she made a fool of herself in front of the entire camp? Oh gods, they would never stop making fun of her! And when she went back home and caved in to tell her mom about it, she would just give her this look and say," I told you do."

Bryony was about to make up so bullshit about how she felt, but Cherche's supporting thumbs up made her freeze. Was...was making up her feelings actually going to fix anything. As much as she hated the answer to that, she knew what she had to do. Without hesitation and with a newfound sense of bravery, she blurted," I have a crush on him."

The silence after her announcement suffocated her, causing her to rethink every decision she had made in her life since that moment; was this really the right option? Oh gods, did she mess everything up? He hated her! Everyone hated her! She should have never said anything at all! Bryony flicked her eyes from one person to the next before abruptly rocketing to her feet," I need to...do something," With that, she sped away from the group. Donnel, who had just gotten over his shock, stumbled over his own feet as he tried to follow her.

"Well...," Cordelia murmured in embarrassment," Guess that didn't go quite as planned..."

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"Byrony?"

Once Donnel realized that his girl was gone, he took off after her as fast as his feet could carry him. Never in a million years did he think that she would return his feelings. In fact, he was starting to think she was getting annoyed by his countless lists that showered her with all the compliments he could think of. Why the heck didn't he respond to her sooner? He clenched his fists and picked up the speed.

He was so lost in his own head that he almost ran right past her. He stumbled a few steps, trying to regain his balance before falling onto his knees in front of the girl. Her back was pressed against a tree trunk and her face was buried in her hands, trying to muffle the sounds of her sobs. Donnel carefully placed his hand on her knee, unintentionally making her jump," Bryony?"

He cringed when he saw how red her eyes were rimmed and how her face glistened with tears," D-Donnel?" She stared at him blankly for a few seconds before forcing a sheepish smile on," Don't worry about what I said earlier. We can pretend like none of this happened."

She moved to wipe her face with the back of her hands, but he caught her wrist before she could," What if I don't want 'ta forget?"

She unconsciously narrowed her eyes before yanking her arm from his gentle grasp," I don't want your pity, Donnel."

"Pity? Who said anything 'bout pity?" The baritone player withdrew his hand back as if it had been bitten, hurt clearly shown in his eyes," You should know better than anyone 'bout my feelings for 'ya."

"Donnel..."

"I und'a'stand if 'ya aren't ready to be in a relationship with me, but you should also know that I'll always wait for 'ya," He took his signature cap off his head and mussed up his hair," A-Always."

Bryony searched his face for any trace of a lie, and when she found none, a pit grew in her stomach," But why me?" She started quietly," I should be honest with you; no one in my family has ever lasted through a marriage. You say that you'll always be there for me, but what about later? What if you get sick of me?! God knows that everyone else has-"

She was effectively cut off when Donnel scooped her face in his hands and pressed his lips against hers. It wasn't the kiss of every girls' dreams, seeing that neither of them had any experience in the activity, but it was by far one of the best moments of her life. She was so caught off guard that she remained stoic, unsure of what to make out of the situation. When the two finally broke apart, Donnel confidently repeated," Always."

Her face burned a shade brighter than Sully's hair color as she struggled to find a coherent answer for him," O-Okay...I mean, I would like that-Gah, that's not it either!" Bryony took a deep breath and spoke as honestly as she could muster," I want that."

Although his face was just as red as her's, the boy managed a smirk," I can tell. Now, do 'ya want to go back 'ta the campfire or-"

"I've had enough of truth or dare for a lifetime," She giggled sheepishly," Can we just stay here for awhile?"

"'Course."

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After Cordelia's question, truth or dare was toned down drastically. Most of the dares had to do with stealing cookies from the camp mess hall and jumping in the lake, while truth questions were always along the lines of lies people may or may not have said.

While everyone was starting to have fun again, Noire couldn't get over the fact that Donnel and Bryony hadn't returned yet. After waiting a good fifteen minutes, she stood up," I'm g-going to make sure t-that the two are okay. You g-guys stay p-put-"

"That's alright, Nellie," Priam interrupted. He sauntered over to his co-chaperone and clamped his hand on her shoulder, gently pushing her back to her seat before turning to the students," I'll go looking for them. We can't have someone as delicate as you going face to face with a snake or something. You're too delicate," To make matters worse, he tilted his head towards Chrom," Hold down the fort until I get back."

The blue haired man waved cockily, and for show, he pulled a bow and arrow from their spot resting against a tree and slung it over himself. No paid him any attention as he left, for their focus had all trailed to Noire's face, which was boiling with anger. The children grimaced, knowing exactly what was going to happen next," WHO DOES THAT BLUE HAIRED DICK THINK HE IS?!"

Those who didn't know Noire as personally as the children nearly jumped out of their skin. Lucina rushed to her feet and tried to calm her friend, but the brunette was inconsolable by this point. She gently pushed the blue haired girl to the side, and placed a sickeningly sweet smile on," You heard the man," She growled," Chrom is in charge until he gets back," With that, the nineteen year old stomped after him.

Noire was fully aware of how easily she could lose her temper, and she was hoping that she would ditch the bad habit when she reached the past. Unfortunately, today proved her wrong. Who did that guy think he was anyways? From what she remembered, he didn't even survive long enough for her to meet him. The stories Chrom told about him gave her the impression that this guy would be a perfect gentleman with the bravery of one twice his age, but as of now, he was acting like a giant child. She groaned in frustration, cursing her mother for putting her in this situation.

She was yanked from her thoughts by a surprisingly deep voice," All alone are you, lamb?" She squinted in the darkness, but the only thing she could make out was a dark figure much larger than she was," Off searching for dear old mum? How very sweet. But the world's a dangerous place, my dear, full of wolves waitin' to snatch you up."

Noire stiffened as her eyes adjusted to the dark. She could make out more than one person, but they were up recognizable," Um...th-thank you for the warning, sir, b-but...," She started backing away, only to trip over a bow and a quiver of arrows. Shit.

The man chuckled darkly," That's no warning, lamb. I'm a wolf, and you've been snatched!" He yanked her up by her upper arm, gripping it so hard that it was sure to leave a bruise," Now come quietly. Scars tend to lower the sale price, and we wouldn't want that..."

She took this as her opportunity to strike; Noire used all the force she could and kicked the man where the sun doesn't shine, causing him to crumpled on the ground. His two lackeys noticed that their leader was facing retaliation and raced forwards to overcome their opponent, but Noire was faster. She scrambled onto the ground and scooped up the weapon that Priam had no doubt dropped, aiming her arrow at one of her enemy's knees. When he came close enough, she released the arrow from it's quiver, watching in satisfaction as it soared through the man's leg. He screeched in pain and crumpled onto the ground. Before Noire could to the same for the other one, he tackled in her to the ground and pinned her arms above her head, knocking her bow as far away from her as possible," I got 'er, boss!"

The man from earlier smirked and trudged to his feet, smugly stalking towards his prey," Looks like the little lamb is lined up for the slaughter. It's a good thing that prostitutes don't have to be pretty," That was all the warning Noire got, because the next thing she knew, his boot soared into her jaw. She hissed in pain, trying not to yelp and hurt her jaw even more than it already did. He moved onto the stomach next, stomping on it until he heard a crack. Noire tried gasping for air each time, but each kick would only cause her more and more pain.

Black dots blurred her vision, coaxing her to slip out of consciousness. Noire almost allowed that to happen when she heard muffled yelling. Her eyes lazily trailed over to the bow, and the faint memory of a cocky blue haired boy filled her brain. It only occurred to her then that these people had captured Priam as well.

Although she practically hated the man, his captivity fueled her anger even more than his personality usually did. There was also the fact that these traffickers would move onto the campers next and there was no way in hell that she was going to let that happen.

Noire used the remaining energy she had to roll out of the lackey's grasp and grab her bow back. She didn't have time to grab any arrows, so she slammed the bow into his temple, effectively knocking him out. The leader's eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't let that hold him back. He barreled forward to knock her down again, but she spun out of the way just in time for him to run headfirst into a tree. She used this to her advantage and pulled an arrow out of her quiver, aiming it at the man's head," Get the fuck out of her," She commanded, trying her hardest not to let her fatigue show.

The once cocky leader nodded in terror and scrambled to help his lackeys up. The three avoided any eye contact with the nineteen year old who had defeated them and ran away with their tales between their legs, whimpering like a bunch of children who had gotten beaten up by the neighborhood bully.

Noire waited until they were out of her sight to search for Priam. Thankfully for her, he was closer than she thought; it was fairly obvious that the three had easily outnumbered him, due to the fact that he was tied to a tree and gagged. She rolled her eyes hazily and fell to her knees, pulling an arrow out of her quiver and using the sharp tip to cut the ropes binding him," A-Are you okay?"

The blue haired man nodded frantically, rubbing his raw wrists and yanking the gag from his face," Yeah, I'm fine. You sure taught those guys! I didn't know you were such a badass!"

She managed a tiny smile before doubling over and grunting in pain," T-Thanks, but...I'm gonna need you...to carry me...back to...," Her voice trailed off as she collapsed against him, completely unconscious.

Priam immediately took the girl in his arms, shaking her limp body," Hey! Noire! Wake up! Come on, don't let those assholes get get best of you! Noire!" He swore under his breath, trying to ignore the fact that seeing her this way was starting to scare him more than when he was captured in the first place," Shit! Those fucking dastards-" He took a deep breath, knowing that freaking out wasn't going to do them any good," Alright, Noire. Hold on tight, I'll get you back safe and sound," He carefully scooped the unconscious girl into his arms, making sure she was secure before dashing back to the campsite.

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After Noire had stomped off, the truth or dare game came to a screeching halt. No one wanted something bad to happen without adults, so they all fell into telling stories and small conversations. With all the lovey-dovey crap going around, Sully wasn't surprised when Virion approached her. She rose her eyebrow at the aqua haired boy," What do you want?"

Said boy pretended that he hadn't been trying to get her attention for the past fifteen minutes and grinned," Sully! What a prize, that these eyes might gaze once more upon your beauty," This was the moment she had been waiting for. Ever since several people had told her about the boy's feelings for her, she had been trying to plot out a way to figure out if he was being genuine or not. With her new plan set into action, she didn't respond at all. Instead, she tilted her head and waited for him to continue. Virion coughed uncomfortably and pulled at the collar of his sweatshirt," Goodness, milady. Your countenance is so very...intense. I should think a lesser man might burst into flames on the spot," She had to keep from laughing when his obvious discomfort grew even worse," Is it getting hot here?" Finally, he crumpled," Are you feeling well? Please respond, you're making me feel like I've done something wrong," She only rose his eyebrow at him, causing him to break," Enough! I yield, milady! Nothing is so daunting as a woman's silence," He added in slightly annoyance.

Sully snorted," Ha! I knew it! I KNEW it! It's all well and good for you to pester others, whether they want it or not. But turn the tables and you change your damn tune! You can't handle the attention!"

The senior furrowed his eyebrows in confusion," This was a...test? Rather beneath a lady of your bearing, I must say," He grumbled irritably.

"I can't get a word in edgewise with you if I play fair. I doubt anyone can with that sharpened tongue of yours," She leaned back before nonchalantly stating," I needed to know at least one of your weaknesses beforehand."

Virion gulped slightly," Er, before...what, pray tell? Delving into the character of your future boyfriend before you date him? Heh heh...," He laughed weakly, trying and desperately failing to get the upper hand.

"Yep."

"Because frankly, I don't see wh—WHAT?!" He nearly fell over in shock," H-hold just a moment... Are you serious?"

Sully kept a straight face, trying hard not to laugh at how much the boy was making a fool out of himself," Deadly so."

This time he was the one making sure that she wasn't lying," Well, th-this is an honor to be sure, but I'm not...I haven't prepared myself!"

"Ha ha...Adding prone to ambush to that list of weaknesses..."

Virion finally got over his shock and smirked, holding his hands up in a mock surrender," You have me at a loss, milady."

The redhead pretended to observe her nails without impressment," Oh? Where has your famous wit run off to? If ever a moment called for poetry...," Her insecurities started to bubble inside her as she glanced back at him," I'm a lady, right? Paragon of grace and beauty? Don't leave me dangling here..."

"N-no, of course, I...," He cleared his throat and reached for her hand, gently cupping it in his," I hereby swear to leave none of milady's desires unmet, even at the cost of my life. It would be this humble man's great joy to accept your gracious offer."

Sully let a small smile grace her lips," Well, I suppose that works...Barely. That really the best you've got, Ruffles?" She teased lightheartedly.

The Aqua haired boy, on the other hand, deflated,"...B-but, I..."

"Ha! I was kidding, Ruffles! That'll work just fine for me. Besides, you've got a date to plan now that we're-"

"Help! Call a doctor!" Everyone at the campfire spun around, only to find a huffing Priam holding an unconscious Noire. When he was only met with their shocked stares, he desperately pressed on," Please! I don't know what to do!"

That was enough to push Lissa into action," Maribelle! Libra! Come on, we need to get her to the mess hall! Henry, get my first aid kit and meet us there. Priam, can you manage to take her there?" He numbly nodded," Good. Chrom, call Frederick and tell him what's going on."

Her older brother fumbled for his phone, but hesitated before dialing," It's pretty late. What if he doesn't answer?"

"Keep calling until he does," Lissa ordered," Robin, Say'ri, you two are in charge. If there is any sign of danger, get the campers to the mess hall. Don't forget about those who are asleep in their tents, alright?" The two girls nodded," Good. Now come on, let's go."

Lucina abruptly stood up," Wait, can I come too? We're really close and...," The worry was evident in her niece's eyes,"...I want to be there if something happens."

"That's fine with me. It'll be good for her to wake up with a familiar face," The blonde motioned for her group to set off, giving Chrom one last order before following them," Send Frederick and Tharja in as soon as they show up."

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**Alright, I have a ton of stuff to say about this chapter. First of all, Priam and Noire's relationship throughout writing this chapter changed when actually written. For example, he was originally going to be super flirty with her, but I scrapped that idea because of the angst that happens later in the chapter. I also like that Priam gets a whole lot more respect for her once he sees her take three guys down by herself when the odds were obviously against her. I mean, Priam is one of those people you have to prove yourself to (for example, you have to beat his entire army and himself in the game just for him to join your cause). They were also originally going to fight a bear instead of the slave traffickers, but the bear didn't work out as well. I added a little hint at that though when Priam teased her about being delicate! Moving on to BryonyxDonnel, who finally got together! Honestly, I really liked the way that they confessed to each other, because it was realistic for both characters and super sweet! Virion and Sully, on the other hand, were a couple that I had fun putting together because Sully was trolling the heck out of him! The cuddling scene is my favorite, because it is a huge chain reaction (of course Ricken followed Chrom's example, lol). I made up Gaius and Henry's stories, but while I got inspiration for Gaius's, I had to make up my own for Henry's. Honestly, they are not that scary because I usually don't read scary stuff. I had to do a bunch of research, but the creepiest things were too long to put in the already long chapter. Remember Henry's story, though. It'll come back up. The next chapter will be pretty big, so make sure to stay tuned! Review time! **

**potatoman098:** **Hehe, she's in deeper trouble than she thinks. Walhart is the best villain to write for because he is absolutely insane in a way. If anything, he's more bloodthirsty than Henry! I found it super weird as well, especially since I knew little to nothing about the future children when I first played the game. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Kit-Cat Star:**** I adore the Justice Cabal so much. They are gorgeous. They are perfect. I love them with all my heart and soul. I hope you liked how the Halloween chapter turned out! Thanks for reviewing!**

**EcoMagic:**** Gregor is a cinnamon bun that just wants to love (and own money). I adore him and Maribelle together because of the way Brady ends up! It's so precious! Lucina and Morgan are tricky, because they don't fully know each other, but they still love each other. There are just a few bumps in the road. I have mixed feelings about Severa as well, but I really like her dynamic with Lucina because they bring out the best in each other. I actually do not ship Nah and Gerome together (even though I understand the ship. Their serious personalities would fit well together), I have them with different people. They are totally the brother/sister like duo, though, cause I feel like they understand each other pretty well. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Golden-Lightning: ****That's really cool! My younger brother is learning Japanese so that he can be a translator. The only language I can bear to learn in Sign Language, because I have such little patience for leaning that kind of stuff. I have a ton of respect for people who know more than one language! Thank you, I'm so glad that people are responding more and more! I love you guys so much, and your feedback means the world to me! Thank you for reviewing!  
**

**Hylianshepherd:** **Yay, I'm glad you like to review! Maribelle and Gregor are finally cannon, yay! Plus we've got two more couples cannon! There are only a few more to go (then, of course, I have to build relationships between the kids. Oi). Lucina didn't mean to say it to him, she just didn't know how else to explain it to Severa. Poor Morgan, though. Inigo is in hiding with Gerome, Levy, and Brady at the moment, but he will be making a reappearance soon enough! I don't know when that chapter will come up though. Maybe in the next two or three-ish chapters. I live on the East side of the United States. I never really considered other time zones because I'm not used to tons of people reading my writing. It's a pretty huge honor! I've always wanted to visit there, but I'm too poor. Chrobin is my life, haha! Thank you for reviewing!**

**supersoldiers3:** **That's so weird! I made sure to add the Pegasus girls because they are pretty important to this story! I especially loved Chrom's reaction to discovering Severa! She's so different from her parents, so I thought it'd be hilarious if she revealed herself. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Moonlights Glow:**** That really sucks that your guard is having that much trouble. Mine isn't doing too well either. Our band teacher is starting to ingore us as a guard. I mean, we had a show last night, and the band started the song while the colorguard was switching our flags! He's annoying me...grr. It's cool that you get to work on sabers, though! We only ever get to do flagwork. Anyways, I'm glad that the children are finally getting to transition into the story! Nowi and Nah are adorable together! All parent-child duos are perfect! I can't wait to work with some of the OC kids! I love Morgan too, but I think my favorite thing about him is his caring nature. I mean, he comforts Lucina and Cynthia the best he can, he likes to look after Orie, he hangs out with Nah to help her get settled...The list is endless! I liked looking into the different side of Morgan though. Poor kid. Thank you for reviewing, and I hope that band gets less stressful for you!  
**

**I'm awkwardly trying to eat dinner and watch a movie and write this at the same time, so I'm going to wrap it up quickly; thanks for reading, stay tuned for next week! Thank you!**

**-Uprisngdragon**


	33. Chapter 33 Disclosure

**Hey guys! I actually almost posted this chapter tomorrow, but for some reason, I got super inspired and decided to finish up the rest of the chapter and post it today! Inspiration is a funny thing. This chapter is a lot of fluff, but it also is the beginning of tying some loose ends together. I will definitely talk more about this chapter in the afterward, because a lot of it is fascinating. No new characters, but there will be some serious plot stuff happening in the next few chapters. Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

The first time the phone rang, Tharja didn't hear it. Orie, on the other hand, was having enough trouble as it was due to teething later than most babies did, and woke up at any audible sound. The sound of her distressed screeches filled the once quiet house, affectively waking her mother. The woman groaned and pulled the pillow out from under her head, whacking her husband with it and slurring," It's your turn."

The second time the phone rang was a good minute or two after the first time, and Tharja could hear it clearly due to the fact that her husband was working on hushing their baby. She stalled, figuring that it was probably a dare from the tradition camp games the Shepherd's played, and tried to snuggle back into her bedsheets.

The third ringing finally dragged her out of bed to go and see what all the fuss was about. She stumbled down the stares and into the kitchen before grumpily answering," What do you want?"

"_Tharja? Oh thank gods you picked up!_" Chrom exhaled from the other side of the phone. She rose her eyebrow at the nervous tone he was using, but decided to ignore it for the time being,"_ You need to come here as soon as possible!_"

She rubbed her eyes irritably," Why the hell would I do that at this time at night? Can't it just wait until morning?"

"_No! Noire's hurt_!"

It was almost as if someone had slapped her. If it was any other person, she would have pinned it as a practical joke, but Chrom was not the type of person to make something like this up for kicks and giggles. She ran her hand through her hair in bewilderment and pressed the boy for answers," What happened?"

"_Maribelle said something about people traffickers, but she, Lissa, and Libra are busy making sure that Noire is okay. She's in really bad shape._"

This was all her fault. If she hadn't press ganged Noire into chaperoning, she wouldn't be in this mess. Tharja's insecurities bubbled up inside of her, this time refusing to be brushed under the rug again," Tell them that we're coming."

"_Wait, what?_"

"I'm not going to let anyone hurt my daughter again," With that, Tharja hung up her phone and pulled her keys off of the counter," Frederick! Get your ass down here!"

Her husband tumbled down the steps with the baby in his arms, looking from her keys to the dangerous expression present on her face," What's wrong? Are the kids alright?"

"Get Orie in the car; we're going to camp."

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Due to the fact that the couple was much more acquainted with the directions, it took half the time to reach their destination. Frederick, who had been married Tharja long enough to tell when she was distressed, tried desperately to reassure his wife, only to receive silence in return. Neither could deny being uneasy, and Tharja carried double the burden due to not asking more about the state of her daughter.

By the time they reached their destination, most of the main Shepherds were still gathered around the campfire with a mixture of worry and weariness clearly expressed in their features. Robin jumped to her feet in relief and went to greet the couple," Thank the gods you guys are here-"

"Where is she?" Tharja interrupted, not showing any interest in small talk.

Sensing this in the woman, Robin nodded towards the mess hall," She's in there with some of the others."

"Here," Morgan hopped up to his feet and opened his arms," I can look after Orie for you while you check on Noire," The couple noticeably tensed at the mention of losing track of their daughter, but the blue haired boy was quick to reassure them," I'll take good care of her, I promise."

Frederick nodded weakly and handed Orie over to the boy," Take care of her, please."

"I'll watch her with my life," Morgan affirmed.

With that order of business out of the way, the couple finally took the walk they had been dreading all night. They approached the mess hall with an odd mix of hesitancy and urgency, both sure and unsure that they wanted to see the state their daughter was in. Tharja was the one to take initiative and open the door, only to find a group of kids surrounding a cot.

The two adults practically ran to the site, pushing their way through the teenagers to see their daughter. While most of her body was covered by a thick comforter, her head was out and in the open for them to see; there was a huge purple bruise on her cheek. Gauze was wrapped around her head as well, clotting the blood that seeped from the back of her head. If that wasn't bad enough, her face was littered with small scratches, and she seemed to wheeze with every breath.

It was just like Emmeryn all over again; someone close to Tharja had been hurt and all she could do was hear about the news. She hugged herself tightly, trying to block out the sound of her husband falling into his knees. As much as she hated the fact, she had to be the one to speak for them," How badly is she hurt?"

Maribelle and Libra exchanged nervous looks, unsure of how to properly inform the couple. Lissa, who had surprisingly taken charge of the situation since Noire and Priam arrived, shooed her friends out of the mess hall before turning to the couple," She has a wound on the back of her head, two of her ribs were cracked, and her ankle is badly swollen. Luckily, her jaw is not broken and we won't need to adjust the ribs for her; they should mold back together without us moving them for her."

"It's all my fault," Priam murmured huskily. The parents turned to the young man, only to find him hunched over in a chair with his head in his hands. Lucina sat in a chair next to him with her eyes trained on the floor," If only I had been a little stronger..."

Frederick swallowed thickly, trying to arrange his thoughts in his head and express them clearly," Chrom said something about people traffickers. How many of them were there?"

"Three. She took them all down by herself, but they had her surrounded long enough to get a few good hits on her," He brought his gaze up, revealing his extremely pale face and dark circles under his eyes," I'm so sorry. I should have done something...anything! I should've-"

Sensing that neither of the two were going to respond, Lucina spoke up," Don't blame yourself, Priam. If you had been able to do something, you would have. Some things are out of our control."

Lissa tried to place on a supportive smile, but her unease was gnawing away at it. After all, she could really confirm anything. She wasn't a real doctor, no matter how much she was playing the role right now. All she could do was try to help the two feel better," She isn't as bad as she looks. Give her a few hours and she'll be right awake."

"Thank you, Lissa," Frederick rubbed his temples in exhaustion," I'm not sure what would have become of my daughter without your help."

"Daughter?" The blue haired man tilted his head in confusion," What does your Noire have to do with this Noire-" His eyes widened," Hold on a minute..."

The band teacher swore under his breath, suddenly fed up with the amount of secrecy that he had to uphold. He spared Lucina an apologetic look before turning his attention back to Priam," She is my daughter, but she's come back from the future. I understand that this seems impossible, but look at her; she is the spitting image of Tharja and I."

"Lucina is also the spitting image of Chrom and Robin, but that doesn't make her their daughter," He caught the sixteen year old's sheepish smile and had to do a double take," You're kidding me, right?"

"I'm glad you finally understand," Frederick pushed himself onto his feet and started back towards the exit," It's about time that we're completely honest with each other. I don't have the patience for another one of my children, whether they be related by blood or not, getting hurt. It's time to tell the others."

Lucina immediately paled, but she couldn't help but agree with Frederick. It was about time they were completely honest with their parents. Tharja let her gaze on her daughter linger a few seconds longer before following her husband. Lissa couldn't help but feel revealed that she wouldn't have to cover her tracks anymore, so she eagerly exited the building. The man watched Priam expectantly, but the assistant coach didn't budge," I'm going to stay here, just in case she wakes up."

The brunette narrowed his eyes, but couldn't find a proper argument to combat the guy's request," Come get us if she does," With that, he lead the others outside to the campfire where everyone was waiting expectantly. He briefly glanced over at Chrom, who rose his eyebrow curiously in response. He hoped that revealing this wouldn't cause the boy too much backlash," I have decided to reveal this to all of you because from what I know, all are you are involved in one way or another. If you wish to stay out of it, leave now," He felt his shoulders relax when no one made any move to exit," Thank you. Now, what I'm about to say is going to sound completely and utterly insane, so you'll hear with me," He took a deep breath," The reason Tharja, Orie, and I are here is not because we heard about an attack on one of the councilors; it's because the girl that was attacked is my daughter."

There were several different reactions from the crowd; those who already knew about the future children grimaced and cast a look towards their offspring. Vaike and Virion played it off as a joke and laughed awkwardly about it, those who were in a couple paled, and the actual children looked like they were going to be sick. Frederick figured he had left the group hanging long enough and went on to explain the situation, hoping that the campers would give him the benefit of the doubt and listen. He recited what he knew, speaking of the horrible future that they came from and the hardships they had dealt with. By the end of his explanation, everyone was incredibly solemn," Now, some of you have children here with us, and if they wish to reveal themselves, they will do so."

Owain, being one of the only children with both of his parents aware of his existence, spoke up first," I am Owain, as I've introduced myself as before, but what you may not know is that I am also the last blood relative of the great heroes Henry and Lissa!"

"No you're not!" Emmy pouted," I'm alive too, remember?!"

Hadlee nearly fell over in shock when she heard that," Hold on just a minute! You're from the future?! Why didn't you tell me?"

The blonde grimaced," Hadlee, I...uh...," Her shoulders slumped in defeat," I didn't think you'd believe me, and I didn't want to lose my best friend."

The auburn haired girl frowned," I believe you right now, don't I? There are no need for secrets between us anymore, m'kay? You can talk to me about anything."

"Well...okay. I guess I should start by saying my name isn't May; It's Emmylene. Emmy for short," She smiled weakly while her friend let out a low whistle.

"Wow, that'll take some getting used to," She paused," Can I just keep calling you May?"

Markel rolled his eyes at his younger sister," Call her by her real name, Had."

"No, no, it's fine! It'll be like a nickname or something," Emmy suggested.

"Goody!" Hadlee clapped," Now, from what you heavily implied earlier, is Owain your brother?" She didn't give her friend the time to respond because she already knew the answer," That's so cool! Our older brothers can hang out together while we are having sleepovers or something! Then we can do that cliche best friends do and prank them!" Hadlee went on explaining all the new things that they could do, causing some of the lighthearted air to return to the campfire.

Morgan weakly rose his hand, and his mother couldn't help but notice the hesitancy that came with it," I'm Robin and Chrom's son, but they already knew that. I figured that I might as well be honest with you guys, since you probably knew already."

"I'm also their daughter," Lucina paused, casting a brief glance over at the fourteen year old before smiling," Morgan is my little brother."

Those words alone lit up the boy like a Christmas tree, his happiness infectious as usual. Cynthia took this as her opportunity and nervously got to her feet," Ah, this is going to sound weird, but-"

"She's Gaius's daughter," Chrom cut in, ignoring the odd looks that his family gave him," Isn't it obvious to see the resemblance? Look at their red hair!" Robin caught on immediately, and her face lost all of its color; she had known that Cynthia had introduced herself as Sumia's daughter, but Chrom did have a point...oh gods.

Gaius had a similar reaction to the white haired girl. His ever-present lollypop dropped from his mouth and landed on the ground while he remained frozen in shock," Uh...dad?" Cynthia played with her hands anxiously," I uh...wow, this is harder than I thought it'd be. No worries, though! Chrom may or may not have mentioned this, but you don't have to stick around with me after this whole gang violence thing is over...Father?"

"Cynthia...I've been told that that was my birth mother's name," He ran his hand through his hair and studied her closer," Gods, there's no denying our resemblance. Do you know who your mother is?"

She shrugged weakly," I can't really say. I don't want you to feel pushed into a relationship just because you know they're my mother."

"Makes sense," He let his eyes fall onto his forgotten lollypop," Hey Cynthia?"

"What?" She cringed at the amount seriousness his tone held," Is something wrong? I didn't scare you, did I?"

She swore that the corner of his eyes were pooling with something, but he wiped them quickly before anything could escape," I...," He swallowed thickly," I took care of you the best I could, right?"

"Of course you did!" The girl burst, aghast that he would suggest such a thing," Mother said that you protected me time and time again! I just...," This time, she was the one choking up," I never got to meet you."

He nodded solemnly," I never got to meet my parents either, but I've heard a few stories about them from other kids I lived with on the street. I guess that was all I had left of them, and it pains me to know that a version of me allowed you to have the same experience I did," Gaius finally brought his gaze up to meet hers," I'm not making that mistake again."

It wasn't the confession of adoration that Cynthia was expecting, yet for some reason, his acceptance of her filled her with a substantial amount of joy. She squealed and jumped into her father's arms, hugging him as tightly as she could. Gaius wheezed," Unnngh...Cynthia...D-don't hug...so tight...Can't b-breathe...C-crushing...ribs...," The teenager blushed and settled for sitting next to him instead.

Nah's eyes flickered between every child that had revealed themselves, dreading that she was about to do the same. The auburn haired girl took a deep breath and forced herself to walk over where her parents were sitting. The two smiled cheerfully up at her, completely oblivious to what she was about to tell them," H-Hi."

"Hi Nah! What are you doing here? Are you going to start coming up for high school band like Ricken did his eight grade year? That'd be so fun! Oh, speaking of Ricken," She motioned to the freshman she was practically sitting on," This is my boyfriend, Ricken! Ricken, this is Nah! She's a percussionist at the middle school."

The boy shook her hand warmly," It's nice to meet you."

"Ditto," Nah answered shakily. With a deep breath, she started speaking again," Can I ask you something?"

"Sure!"

The twelve year old took a deep breath and pulled unlatched the chain around her neck, pulling out of it's hiding spot underneath her shirt to reveal a class ring," Does this look familiar?"

Nowi looked from her ring to the ring around the necklace," Whoa, you have the same ring as me! What a crazy coincidence! Ricken, how many of these things do they make?"

"I thought that they were one of a kind," He replied faintly, the pieces of the puzzle starting to click together for him.

Nah shifted awkwardly," It's not a coincidence. This is your ring. It's a memento of my parents. From...the future. It keeps me safe, now that...," She tightened her fists," Now that you're gone."

"Nah..."

Their daughter turned to Ricken, surprised," No, I'm serious. It does."

Nowi giggled," Oh, heehee! You did it to yourself that time!" The glare she earned from her daughter caused her to get back on track," Anyways, I think that it's very sweet. And now that you're with us, you don't have to hold back," Ricken nodded in agreement, placing on the warmest smile he could produce.

The auburn haired girl flinched," I wasn't holding back, I swear! I fought as hard as I could..."

"No, I'm positive fought brilliantly, Nah," She assured," But that's not what I meant. I was talking about your tears," Nah's hands shot up to touch her face, and she winced when she felt her moist cheeks," If you're sad, you can talk to us."

Nah shook her head furiously," No, I...I have to be strong. Everyone expects me to. I have a fire device, you know? And that's not...normal, especially for a twelve year old...," She sniffled," I have to put on a brave face and protect everyone, just like you guys do."

Ricken snickered," Us? Oh Nah, we're not nearly as brave as some of the people in this group. I mean, your mother cries all the time, and I really mean all the time. And don't tell anyone, but I cried a few days ago just because I stubbed my toe."

"Trust me on this—holding things back won't make you stronger," The green haired girl confirmed," I used to get really bad nightmares, and sometimes I still do. If I hadn't told Ricken about them, I don't know where I'd be," Her boyfriend blushed slightly at that, but Nowi ignored it (for now) and continued," Just be you, Nah. That's enough."

Nah started shaking," I...This whole time, I..."

"I know it's been pretty scary, but you made it through!" The couple shared a look before turning back to their daughter," We're here for you now."

Nah sniffed, letting her tears fall a little more freely now," Mom, I...," Without warning, she finally broke down and collapsed into his parents' arms," Oh, it was awful... I thought I was going to DIE!"

Nowi giggled and smoothed her daughter's hair, trying to keep tears back herself," It...it's okay, Nah. We're here, now."

Meanwhile, Severa was fully aware that she was the last child that was going to have to reveal herself. Seeing the other parents accept their kids encouraged her slightly, but knowing that her mother might still harbor feelings for Lucina's dad made her hesitant. Should she be bold and come right out and say it, or should she be easy on her parents? There were so many options, and even one misstep could-

"Excuse me, are you another one of the future children?"

Severa tensed up immensely when she heard Cordelia's voice. Did she know already? Of course she knew! Or did she? The olive haired girl gritted her teeth and turned towards the couple," Wh-what do you want?!"

Cordelia smiled," You just seem a bit conflicted. If you tell me who your parents are, I can help you find them, er..."

"Severa," She shifted uncomfortably, hoping that her name didn't hide meaning like Cynthia's did,"...My name's Severa."

The redhead smiled," It suits you somehow. Oh, and my name is-"

"Cordelia. I know," She briefly glanced over at her boyfriend before crossing her arms uncomfortably," I also know Stahl, so don't bother introducing him."

The teenager tilted her head, sharing a confused look with her beau before replying back," Er, yes, that's...But how did you...?" She pursed her lips," I'm sorry, did we introduce ourselves before"

Severa bit her tongue," I guess you must have if I know your name."

"I...I see. Well, thank you all the same, Severa," Stahl smiled gently," Even if we have met before, it's nice to meet you."

She didn't respond, instead opting to nod her head nervously. Her fears were starting to eat away at her again, and if she let that happen...Severa straightened up," I never said that you've met me, but I have met you...in the future."

Stahl's face lost all color before he promptly passed out. Cordelia's mouth dropped in shock, but it was a comfort when she didn't follow her boyfriend's suit," A-Ah, I see. That would explain how you know our names...you're my child," Now that she looked closely, Severa did have Stahl's hair color (and messiness) and her face," Isn't that right?"

The sixteen year old rubbed her arms, grumbling something too quiet for her to hear," I was...lonely..."

The words hit her harder than she thought they would," What was that?"

Severa caught her her mistake and put up her walls again, barricading whatever emotion she had been feeling inside," I SAID, I thought you'd be lonely, so I came here to see you!" She shuffled awkwardly before mumbling,"...You're welcome."

Cordelia smiled sadly and rubbed her unconscious boyfriend's shoulder," That's very sweet."

"D-don't mock me! You don't care!" The teenager turned her head away, her eyes locking in on someone in the distance," You don't care at all..."

"How could you possibly think that? I'm thrilled beyond words to meet you!" It was true; Cordelia had always wanted to have a family, and her daughter was the assurance that she needed to know that she would turn out okay without Chrom.

Her words didn't soothe Severa's fears,"...Then why'd you leave me? You said you had to go off to fight for what really mattered, and you never came back!" She yanked her gaze back to her mother and glared at her," You picked Chrom over me!"

Suddenly, Cordelia's brain felt like it was full of cotton. Was she really that devoted to Chrom? Sure, she had had a huge crush on him, but now she had Stahl and her friends to make her happy. What did Severa's mother do? Honestly, she didn't want to know,"...You have me at a disadvantage, Severa. I can't answer for my future self. But when I said I was fighting for what mattered, I probably meant you. I'd want nothing more than to build a world where you could grow up happy and strong. At least, that's what I want right now," She added.

Severa sighed in frustration," You think I don't know that...? I mean, I DO know that, but..."

The redhead got up from her spot on the ground and placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders," I'm sorry I wasn't a better mother to you."

Severa flinched away, clearly not used to the amount of gentleness the girl was using. She went back to hugging herself and weighed her options in her head, once again trying to decide the best way to communicate her feelings," Well, you're still MY mother," Severa clarified slowly," which makes you the best mother in the world."

Relief hit her and washed over her like a wave," And the luckiest, it seems."

the olive haired girl cautiously checked her surroundings before giving in. Without warning, she yanked her mother into a hug and buried her face into her chest," Oh, Mom, I missed you so much! I...I'm sorry I was so mean...I just...I didn't want to lose you again...," She sniffled, giving away that the girl wasn't as tough as she tried to be," Promise you won't leave, okay? Promise!"

Cordelia smoothed her daughter's before pressing a kiss on her forehead," I promise."

Now that everyone had reunited with their parents, the Shepherds regrouped," I know that this may come as surprising, but from what we know, there are more children," Chrom started to explain," We don't exactly know where they are, but I have briefly met another one-"

Lucina, who had not known this information, turned to her father," Really? Who was it?"

"I think his name was Inigo. He had brown hair and a pretty face, and was most likely around your age...," The blue haired boy watched as the color drained from his daughter's face," What? What's wrong?"

"W-When did you see him?"

He grimaced," He was in Walhart's office interrogating him because he thought that he had kidnapped you or something. I figured that he was just thrown out of the school not long after that and banned from campus."

Her face went from white to bright red in a matter of milliseconds," Why didn't you tell me this sooner?! I could've looked for him longer-"

"Wait, you knew him?"

"Of course I knew him!" Lucina cried," I was under the impression that he disappeared on his own, not because Walhart had something to do with it!"

Say'ri cringed," Your worries are sensible; If we are being truthful with each other, I'm fairly certain that he is the one that kidnapped my brother. That is the true reason I transferred here."

Robin opened her mouth to reveal the suspicious conversation she had with him, but the words died in her mouth. Could she trust everyone here to keep her secret? She was positive the original shepherds had her back since they had seen it before, but there were most likely spies everywhere. She unconsciously rubbed away at the tattoo on her hand until it was raw and red.

Say'ri's comment and her mother's nerves only fueled Lucina's anger," Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?!"

"I didn't know if he was a good guy or not," Chrom defended," How could I when you ditched school with some other guy-"

"To save Nah!" The blue haired girl crossed her arms angrily," I know how to take care of myself, father," Her fury faded back into worry when the weight of the situation set in," I'm sorry, this is no time to point fingers. I need to start looking for the others before someone gets to them too," She combed her fingers through her hair," Oh gods, Inigo...He could be anywhere. He could be...," She briefly glanced over at Olivia and Lon'qu before clenching her fists and turning back to the group," We can't let these monsters win. Our future isn't the only thing at stake anymore," Her face grew steadily more and more determined," Now prepare yourselves...to FIGHT!"

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**So, all of the Shepherds are aware of the future children, but most of them don't know that the time travelers are their children. I'm glad I finally got to put this in, because it's easier for everyone (not the entire band, but the main units and whatnot) to know and be aware of the danger they're about to put themselves in. Lots and lots are parentxchildren moments in this chapter, and I kind of loved them all! Tharja's relationship with Noire is a bit odd, but there will be more input on that later. Priam is putting a lot of guilt on himself because he couldn't stop anything that happened to her. I forgot to say this in the last chapter, but I freaking love that Lissa took charge of the situation and went straight to business! We had a cute HadleexEmmy friendship moment, because it is important that they remain friends (that, and I find Hadlee and Markel adorable). They are just so hard to fit in! URG! Haha, Cynthia was revealed as Gaius's daughter instead of Sumia's (Robin's reaction is my favorite). We got a little tidbit of Gaius's past and his personality. I'm going to hint that there will be an OC or two attached to him. Who knows who they'll be? Out of all of the kids reunions, Nah's was my favorite. Ricken and Nowi are precious parents, and I adored adding Ricken into their interaction. I actually really liked Severa's reunion as well (haha, Stahl passed out) because her and Cordelia had good bonding time. Lucina now knows what happened to Inigo (ish), but she doesn't know where he is. Stressful, huh? Okay, I think that's most of what happened in this chapter, so it's review time!  
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**Potatoman098:**** Haha, I adore dorkChrom! Yeah, it's weird that Lucina is not the oldest, but for some reason, I never really consider her as it. I guess it's because she looks younger than some of them and is my daughter. I never really thought about that until you pointed it out, and I found it hilarious! The irony of her authority is that she's only been with the Shepherds for two months and already has their respect. And I chose Say'ri to help her out because she was also a Drum Major, even though she isn't currently one. She also has the ability to keep a cool head in a stressful situation, so I thought that it would work out. Out of all the kids, Lucina is definitely the only one that is completely okay with her parents being all lovey-dovey, because I headcannon that she is a huge hidden romantic. Thank you for reviewing! **

**BubbleTea-chan:** **I adore the Justice Cabal so much! My little babies are precious and best friends and lighthearted and UGH, I adore them. Thank you for commenting!**

**Golden-Lightning:** **Oh good! As I've said before, I am horrible with writing scary things (and songs. Don't ever ask me to write a song, it'd be horrible). That is really cool! Sign Language is just a bunch of differents signs and altered grammar. It's pretty weird, but I like it! If I were to learn another language though, it'd probably be Japanese. If you want to learn a random fun fact about myself, I really want to go to Disneyland Tokyo for my honeymoon (granted, I'm only in High school right now, so it'll be awhile). Thank you for reviewing! **

**EcoMagic:**** I figured that they were both dragon people, and that was a good start. That evolved into something very close to a brother-sister bond, and I like it that way! They're both getting different people anyways. GOD, I KNOW RIGHT?! I really really want Chrom and Ricken to have supports! There is so much potential for both of them to grow, yet they hardly speak after the chapter! Grr...I also want Chrom and Stahl to have supports because I headcannon them being childhood friends. Plus, why don't Lucina and Noire get a support together (actually, I can see why that wouldn't make much sense, but they're practically are sisters in this story, so I really want it)! I actually thought about doing it that way, but I'm not sure if it would scare Bryony away or not. She's not a huge romantic, as seen when she constantly tried rejecting his compliments. If I'm going to be honest with you, that is a possibility I'm considering. I'm not stuck on anything yet because I'm seeing where the story goes with Noire and Priam, but you're right! Anything can change! I am also fleshing the crap out of Priam because he is basically the last unit you get and he can't support with anyone accept you. There is so much development to be made with him! Virion and Sully are a thing now, yay! Their relationship is an odd one as well, but I mean, it'll be made even greater once Kjelle gets introduced! Yeah, I can imagine Henry telling his utterly disturbing story with a huge smile on his face as well. Those poor campers must have been terrified. No no no no no no no no no no, I can't have the Justice Cabal turn against each other! Most of my logic for that actually revolves around the fact that (I think I might be alone in this boat) I really can't ship Owain and Cynthia together whatsoever. They don't balance each other out very well in my opinion. Otherwise, that would be a very angsty idea that would be interesting to write! Thank you for the review! **

**Animeseris:**** Really? Huh. I've heard about that story (my brother really likes creepypasta), but I can't remember anything about it (I actually just tried to call my brother over to ask him about it so that I could properly respond, but he must not be in the house at the moment). Ironically enough, I looked up low-key creepypasta for inspiration, so maybe that is where the roots come from? I don't really know. I just read Tooth Fairy, it was pretty weird and creepy. The only one I know pretty well is raprat(?). It's the one with the game that is really creepy or something. It's weird. Noire is a heck of a fighter, and it's about time she earned his respect! He is going to gush all over her as soon as she heals up. Thank you for reviewing! **

**supersoldiers3:**** As sadistic as this sounds, I'm glad you found it scary! I was worried it wouldn't be creepy at all. Hehe, it get's even more disturbing once it comes back into play. We'll figure more out about that later! Gaius and Sumia are slowly becoming one of my favorites, because every time I write them, another layer to thier story gets added. Aww, thank you! I'm glad you like it that much! If I'm up for it, once this story is over, I may write a few one shots involving things such as the rest of the truth or dare game (or if I'm extremely bored and have a lot of freetime on my hands). Noire is an awesome person, ingame and instory. She'll just walk her injuries off, lol. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Ethereal780: ****Their introduction is tricky because I can't put as much emotion in it as the game did because A) Chrom and Robin literally just started dating, so having a daughter is pretty scary and out of the ordinary and B) as I mentioned before, Lucina hasn't been born yet. I'm sorry that the introduction to each other didn't work out for you, but I can't really go back and change it because of how far ahead I am from that chapter. I'm glad that you like the rest of the story though! Thank you for reviewing!  
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**Hey guys, I've officially broken my record! I'm at around 330 pages, which beats my 320 pages (give or take) from my other longest (and possibly worst) story! Thank you guys for sticking through it with me, because without your support, I would have given up a long time ago. Your guys' support means the world to me, and I am so lucky to have such friendly and amazing readers! I can't wait to go even deeper into this story and hear your reactions to some of the bigger surprises! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next weekend!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	34. Chapter 34 The Grimleal Mark

**Hey guys! Guess who not only got to write this chapter ahead of time, but also got to edit it (don't get too high of expectations when I say "edit". There will most likely still be typos)! This chapter is also really long because the plot picks up A LOT. I don't want to give away too much (especially since there will be a lot of surprises in the next few chapters), but I will say that I'm super excited for you guys to read this part of the story! Alright, that's about it for now! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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To say that Inigo was getting restless was a huge understatement. He had been confined in this damned safe house for nearly two weeks now, and there was no way in hell he was going to stay another minute.

The hardest part about his predicament was that both Gerome and Brady refused to let him leave, claiming that his injuries would reopen and that Walhart was now out to get him. Sure, both of their arguments were true, but what was he supposed to do about? Wait to be rescued and brought to yet another safe house? Ugh, that would be a major blow to his pride and patience.

He finally found his opportunity when Brady and Gerome announced they were going out to buy groceries, saying that Levy was too young to go (she stuck her tongue out at that) and that Inigo should stay inside so that Walhart won't find him (yeah, like the man would look all the way out here for a guy he didn't care much for killing). He waited a few minutes after they left, making sure that they wouldn't come back to find him sneak out. Once he deemed the coast to be clear, he scribbled an explanation on the back of a newspaper and exited the house.

After two weeks of being confined, sunlight hit you harder than you thought it would. Inigo winced from the impact, but he couldn't keep the smile off of his face. He was free! He was finally-

"Where do you think you're going, Lover boy?"

Inigo felt all cheeriness drain from him, quickly replaced by annoyance," Just pretend you saw nothing and go back to the safe house. I can't bear to be in there for another minute."

Levy folded her arms and glared at the boy," Well, neither can I!" The brunette bit his lip sheepishly; He had just assumed that everyone was content with being stuck and waiting. While he was pretty sure that the other two were pleased with the situation, it was obvious that Levy had run out of patience," They've kept me there way longer than you! I have a serious case of cabin fever, and I don't want to wait another minute to join the cause and wipe the Grimleal off the globe!"

"Uh, I think you used that phrase wrong-" When he caught her warning glare, he held up his hands in defeat. She had never been one with words, but she got highly annoyed whenever someone corrected her," Nevermind. So I assume you want to accompany me back to Ylisse, then?"

The purple haired girl was at his side in a millisecond, hooking her arm in his and grinning widely," I thought you'd never ask!"

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For some reason, the prospect of future children terrified Anna. It didn't help that half of the girls in the band were now trying to predict the name and gender of their child in excitement. Cherche was by far the most elated at the fact of starting a family, and she was peer pressuring Bryony and Maribelle into talking to her about it. She tried to get other girls to talk about it as well, but their reactions were varied; Sumia only shrugged in disinterest and glanced at Cynthia for the thousandth time since she revealed herself. Panne only glared at her, Sully started choking in shock, Tiki giggled bashfully, and Say'ri blushed. Thankfully, Tanith seemed to be in the same boat as Anna. She briefly talked about not minding having a future child come back, but she also mentioned having an extremely bad feeling about it.

Anna sighed and drummed her fingers against the bench she was sitting on, trying to come up with a new article. It seemed that the only headline that would come to mind was about the kids, and there was no way she'd compromise their identity. Why couldn't she get her mind off of them? When did she start caring about domestic stuff like that?

She hardly noticed Hewitt plop down into the seat next to her and open his book. Even though she still wasn't quite used to his constant silence, she had grown more accustomed to the idea. His idea of hanging out was simply being in the presence of other people, and he often accompanied her whenever she wrote and article and read while she worked.

She fiddled with her keyboard for a few minutes before turning to the boy," What do you think about this whole future children thing?" Hewitt, who was used to her random outbursts, only shrugged in response," Really? How can you be so nonchalant about this whole thing? I mean, we have a future to protect now! Time travel is possible? Don't you find any of this weird?" Once again, he shrugged," I mean, think about it; we could each have kids! I mean, yours would probably be all quiet like you, and mine might as well be cardboard cut out versions of my moms-I mean-" Anna suddenly realized why this whole thing was bothering her so much," Oh my gods, what if...Oh gods-"

The redhead cut off when she felt Hewitt place his hand on top of hers," They won't."

"You can't confirm that! I mean, the twin gene will most definitely be passed down, and before I know it, I'll have two younger versions of my sisters and I to look after. And if my mothers has their way, they'll train them just like they're training us to take over the store! If not them, at least one of my sisters will! What if-"

"Anna."

"What?!"

"They won't," He repeated, squeezing her hand gently," They are your children, not hers."

Once he realized that he was holding her hand, he yanked his away and coughed uncomfortably. She tried to hold back a giggle in response, instead opting to punch his arm lightly," You have a point, but I'm still a little hesitant."

"But you-"

"Thank you for your cooperation, Miss Laurene," A deep voice pierced through the air, immediately catching the friends' attention. The two shared a knowing look before glancing over at the principal's office where Mr. Walhart was talking to a sophomore. From what Lucina and Say'ri had said, there was definitely something fishy about this guy. Hewitt frowned and got up to leave, but the redhead grabbed his wrist and yanked him back down again, tilting her head towards the pair. He inwardly groaned, but didn't make another move to leave," I will have this situation fixed in no time."

"I should be the one thanking you!" Anna narrowed her eyes when she heard Marie's voice," I feel so uneasy around her, like she'll try to hurt me any minute! I'll feel so much safer once she's gone."

"You are incredibly brave for revealing this, Miss Laurene. After all, no one wants to make an enemy out of the Grimleal," Anna's face lost all of its color at the mention of the word. Had a member of the Grimleal infiltrated their school? How could-

Wait.

Realization hit her like a punch to the gut; they were talking about Robin. She was the only student in the entire school with a mark on them, and there was no doubt that Marie was turning her in because of her school-girl crush on Chrom. Anna tightened her grip on his wrist, causing him to hiss and yank it away.

"What are you two doing here?" The pair's hearts stopped when they realized Walhart was suddenly standing right in front of them," Don't you have classes to get to?"

"This is our free period," Anna replied quickly, making a small motion towards her laptop," I'm working on an article for the school newspaper right now."

Walhart rose his eyebrows in an unimpressed fashion," I see. And what about your friend? Is he a fellow reporter of yours?"

Knowing that he wouldn't speak up himself, she answered for him," No, he's just a friend of mine that I like to bounce ideas off of. He doesn't really talk much."

His eyes narrowed as he observed the dark haired boy," Oh? Does he have a cold as well?"

"What? No, he just isn't talkative, especially with strangers," Anna wasn't stupid. She knew that if she kept trying to explain Hewitt's silence to the man, he'd take it the wrong way and think that he was Grimleal. She tried to divert the questioning instead," Why aren't you in your office? I don't want to keep you from whatever paperwork you need to fill out."

The man opened his mouth to question them further, but a smirk played across his lips instead," Actually, I finally remembered why I came here. Miss Nettle-Anderson's mother wanted her to head home and help out her sick father. So, if we could just stroll into my office-"

"She doesn't have a father," Hewitt growled, causing the principal to narrow his eyes," You're not getting her."

Walhart glared at the boy with a look that could melt steel, but much to Anna's surprise, Hewitt didn't let his physique falter," I don't know what you're implying, Mr. Smith, but I can assure you that I don't mean Miss Nettle-Anderson any ill will. I only want what's best."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Anna blurted.

"I'm keeping the city safe," Before anyone could question him further, he spun on his heel and stormed back into the office.

Once he was finally gone, Anna released the breath she had been holding and jumped to her feet," We have an hour to find Robin and warn her."

"I doubt that anything will happen," Hewitt replied as he pulled her back down onto her seat," We can tell her during band. She'll be fine until then."

Although she didn't make a move to get away, the redhead crossed her arms in protest," I don't know. I still have a bad feeling about this whole thing."

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One of the many downsides of being a freshman was that you were required to participate in gym. While most people hated it, Cynthia looked at it as keeping herself in shape for when she was ambushed. That, and it gave her the perfect opportunity to spout out battle cries at her fellow soccer players," I am Cynthia, Vanquisher of Evil!" She kicked the ball into the goal with a force much stronger than what seemed possible for the young girl," My foot has judged you and found you wanting!" She smiled and headed back to defense where she was supposed to be playing," Nice. I'm totally using that next time out."

Morgan smiled at her as she approached him again. While they matched similarly in energy, he had little to no coordination of control over his growing limbs. The first time he tried to shoot a goal, he missed and tripped over himself, so the teacher settled on placing him in defense," You seem as chipper as ever, Cynthia. I feel energized just watching you," He remarked proudly.

The ginger glowed at his compliment," Hey, if I've got anything to offer, it's pep! Belting out catchphrases and awesome hero speeches always gets me going."

"So that's your secret, is it?"

"Yup!" She nodded enthusiastically, unknowingly letting the soccer ball roll right past them," If you're ever feeling worn down, I can't recommend it highly enough," The teenager snapped her fingers," Hey! You should try it right now!"

Morgan tilted his head. If screaming these hero phrases that Owain and Cynthia always spoke about helped their confidence, maybe it would help his. After all, he needed some positivity to keep his mind from wandering too much," All right, maybe I will! Let's see...," He tapped his chin," I am Morgan, the, um, unwavering light that makes bad guys...," He shrugged,"...really sad?"

The girl clapped her hands," Wow, that was great! You're a real natural!"

"Hey, you were right! That does feel good! I bet with a little bit of practice, I could really get used to this!"

"Oh, yay! It's always great to find someone who appreciates the art of heroism!" He could barely pick it up, but there seemed to be a hint of relief in her eyes. Morgan shrugged it off and turned his attention back to their conversation," We are perfect best friends for each other!"

Morgan perked up at the word "best friend" and grinned," Heh, it does seem like we're something of a matched pair."

"And that means it's up to us to keep the speeches coming till everyone is energized!"

The blue haired boy gave her a thumbs up before turning to the rest of the students in the gym and yelling," Look out, world! I'm gonna shout at you until I'm hoarse!"

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The last thing Robin expected to see when she entered the band room was Walhart, surrounded by Flavia and two of the other cops. She stopped so abruptly that Chrom ran into her, causing him to grumble slightly," What is going...," His eyes fell on the police in the room and felt his face pale,"...on?"

He would've felt comforted by the fact that Flavia was there, but her face was ridden with a mix of anger and guilt. It didn't help that Walhart was grinning like a Cheshire Cat," Miss Doe, I'm very sorry about the inconvenience, but after hearing word of the mark on your hand and the abuse to your students, I have taken it upon myself to call the authorities."

As soon as he heard the word "mark", Chrom yanked Robin behind him and used himself as a barrier between the two," She hasn't done anything wrong-"

"That is not what the eyewitness said-"

"What eyewitnesses?! Everyone here has known for two months, and no one has said a word about it!" Chrom's outburst caused the entire band to hush and turn their attention to their drum majors.

Walhart's eyes darkened," You don't know your band as well as you thought, then. Now, please step aside. I'm afraid that if you try and resist Miss Doe's arrest, we'll have to take you in as well."

Robin's heart thrummed loudly in her chest. What was she supposed to do? The last time she had been this terrified was when Gangrel attempted to kidnap her, but this was ten times more serious. She could get life in prison for something she didn't remember doing! What if she ended up in the same jail as Chrom's father? He wouldn't hesitate hurting her. Would Validar bail her out and take ownership of her? What would he do then? She didn't want to go, but if she resisted, they would take Chrom. If the two of them were gone, who would take care of Lucina and Morgan? Who would take the band to state? She squeezed her eyes shut and pinched herself, praying that this was all one ghastly dream. Before she could even think about opening her eyes and facing her problems head on, someone roughly grabbed her by the shoulders, forced her wrists in handcuffs, and dragged her away from her boyfriend. All the courage that she had built up vanished as fear coursed through her veins," Chrom!"

The blue haired boy nearly lunged after her, but Stahl and Vaike intervened by holding him back," No, Robin!"

"She is not under arrest yet," Flavia informed, although it only came across as a pitiful attempt to calm the boy," but she is linked to an illegal organization and will be kept in a holding cell at the Regna-Ferox Police Station. If we do not find any information against her, she will be released. If we do, we will have a court case and find her verdict," She softened," You need to trust me."

"But what if-"

"Chrom," It took all of Robin's willpower to look her boyfriend in the eye. What she was about to say was going to be a huge lie, but if it kept her family out of trouble, then so be it. She was glad that her hands were behind her back, because if they weren't, he would've seen her shaking," I'm not afraid. I can handle this. Anyways, both of us know that there is little to no evidence of any crimes linked to me. I'll be in and out by tomorrow."

Walhart rolled his eyes," Of course you would say that. You Grimleal filth think you can weasel your way out of anything," He straightened up, subtly smirking at the helplessness in Chrom's features," Now that we have this situation over with, we will be making our absence. Have a nice day-"

"Hold on!" Everyone in the room turned to the redheaded saxophone player as he angrily approached the policemen and Walhart," Are you saying that you are arresting her just because of her Grimleal mark?" When no one answered, he hurriedly combed his fingers his hair. He turned his gaze from Flavia to Robin, and much to her shock, he softened. Before she could think of what exactly that meant, he stiffened back up and looked the police chief head on," Fine. I didn't want to do this, but you've left me no other choice," In one quick motion, he pulled his sleeve up, revealing the mark on his bicep," I have it too, so that means you're going to have to take me along."

If the silence before was bad enough before, the room was deathly quiet now. Hardly anyone dared to breath as they waited to see what the police would do. After a few moments of stillness, Gaius held out his wrists for emphasis," Well? What are you waiting for?"

Flavia gaped at the boy, unsure of what to do. In all of her years of being on the force, no one had told her to arrest them. Sure, the occasional few turned themselves in, but this was a whole new experience. Walhart rolled his eyes impatiently and took matters into his own hands by yanking a pair of handcuffs off of one of the unit's belt. In one swift motion, he spun the teenager around and clasped them tightly onto his wrists. The man grumbled something into Gaius's ear, to which he cheekily replied," Gee, thanks Pinchers."

The principal roughly spun him back around and shoved him over to Robin," You are an idiot."

"I'd rather be an idiot than an asshole any day," This time, Gaius was the one to narrow his eyes," Why are you doing this? Do you get some sort of sick form of pleasure from seeing people in agony?"

"By whose laws do you judge me? Yours? Your cult's?" He didn't give them the opportunity to answer," Look at you! Are you not ashamed? Your mind is filled with nothing but secondhand beliefs and you are being showcased as criminals in front of your entire school. You dance upon the stage of your gods like a mindless puppet! THAT is what I reject: being a slave to tradition, to obligation. The old ways. Damn the gods! Damn their fates and their destinies! I will have true freedom! And man who offers less is my enemy," When he realized his sudden outburst, he stepped back and smoothed any wrinkles in his blood red suit," Excuse me. I have strong ideals," Walhart cleared his throat and smiled condescendingly," Now, does anyone else wish to get arrested before we leave?"

A soft groan came from Hewitt as he stood up and dragged his feet as he approached the police. He wordlessly lifted his shirt slightly, revealing a Grimleal mark just above his waist. Once he was sure that everyone had seen it, he dropped his shirt and turned around so that they could handcuff him.

"You have one too?" Robin sputtered.

The dark haired boy nodded, unconsciously wincing as a policeman cuffed him and pushed him towards the other two. They could briefly hear Walhart grumble something about not being surprised, but the words went right past their heads," You know what you're getting yourself into, right?" Gaius murmured quietly, earning a serious nod from the trumpet player," Good. It'll be easier with you along for the ride."

"Thanks."

Walhart yawned, untouched by the brief conversation," Can we leave yet?"

"You're not going anywhere," Flavia ordered," The situation is now in our hands, not yours. Your work here is done, so you can leave," The stoniness in her voice was warning enough for him. He only sent one last glare towards the trio before exiting the band room. When he was finally gone, her shoulders drooped," Come on, kids. Best not elongate the inevitable."

"Hold on a minute," Gaius briefly stepped away from the group and turned to Chrom," I'm looking after your girl, please look after mine," Although he didn't specify who he was talking about, the blue haired boy nodded confidently. He glanced over at Hewitt, who shook his head up and down to express the same wishes.

Everything next happened in a blur; the trio was escorted outside to two different police cars. While some of the cops insisted on taking the boys in one car while Robin rode alone, neither Gaius or Hewitt were willing to separate themselves from their drum major. Flavia eventually settled on letting the three of the ride in her car while her other staff members went alone.

It was halfway to the police station after being wedged between the two boys in the backseat when Robin finally spoke up," F-Flavia? Can you t-take the boys back to school?"

"Like we're going to let you do that," Gaius snorted," You're stuck with us, Bubbles."

"But w-what if you get hurt?"

He laughed bitterly," I can't speak on behalf of Hewitt here, but my adoptive father was incredibly abusive," To prove his point, he tilted his head up so that she could see the scar on his neck," I think I can handle a few cops."

Hewitt snorted," My dad wasn't the best guy around either. We'll be fine," He glanced down at her and gave her a small smile," It's you we're looking out for."

The car fell back into silence until they reached the station. Flavia allowed the three to each make a phone call, but they weren't allowed to be near each other during this time. Hewitt was first, and while he didn't mention much about his conversation, Robin had a sneaking suspicion that it had something to do with Anna. Gaius went next, phoning Sumia and begging her to look after Cynthia until they got released. Robin went last, immediately choosing Frederick as her one call," Frederick?"

_"Did the substitute teacher not come in today? I swear I booked one-"_

"Uh, no...that's not it...," She sighed shakily, trying to find the right words to convey," Wow, I don't have any idea how I'm supposed to tell you this."

She could almost see his eyebrows droop," _What's going on, Robin?"_

"I kind of...got...arrested."

_"You got-What?!"_ She braced herself for the angry outburst, followed by a long, drawn out lecture about how irresponsible she has been. Instead, she was met with a long sigh and a soft answer," _Are you safe?"_

"W-What?"

_"Did they hurt you?"_

Despite her best efforts to keep herself composed, Robin couldn't keep her eyes from watering," I'm a bit shaken up, but I'll be okay. Gaius and Hewitt came with me to make sure I'd be alright. I'll be safe."

Frederick exhaled in relief on the other side of the phone," _Alright. I'll come tonight once I know that Noire is safe with Tharja and see what I can do. Remember to be on your best behavior and stay strong; we'll get you out in no time."_

She sniffled," Thank you so much. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"_Honestly, I've gotten to that point where I couldn't imagine life without you either,"_ He chuckled," _I will hopefully see you soon."_

"Yeah," She replied weakly," See you soon."

Robin felt her nerves bottle up when she hung up the phone and turned back to the policeman who was watching her, giving him a shaky nod. The man grabbed her by the arm and escorted her to a small holding cell where Gaius and Hewitt were waiting for her. He slid the barred door open before shoving her inside and slamming it shut," Now don't cause any trouble, or you'll regret it."

The three waited for the comforting sound of the exit closing before speaking up," Well, that was exhausting," Gaius clucked his tongue," Far too melodramatic for my liking. But hey, what do I know? I've never been arrested before. Have you, Hewitt?" The boy shrugged," Its a yes or no question, but I'll let it slide this once," Gaius plopped down on one of the cots set up in the cell for them and tested it out," Hey, these aren't that bad! I could learn to get used to this...not that I want to," He frowned when he didn't get a reaction from either of his new roommates," Come on, guys, we need to remain positive if we're going to make it out of this mess."

"How can I?" Robin grumbled before dropping onto her own cot. It wasn't nearly as comfortable as Gaius was making it out to be," This is all my fault."

"No, it's not!" The ginger reassured," If we didn't want to do this, we wouldn't have gotten ourselves into this. Right Hewitt?"

The boy nodded from his spot, this time speaking up because he sensed the girl's distress and wanted to make her feel better," I've been in worse situations."

"See? Everything will be alright," Gaius gave her a thumbs up, unintentionally revealing bruising surrounding his wrist. He caught her watery stare and frowned," What? What are you looking at?"

Robin's brain started running a mile a minute; What had caused the bruising? Obviously it was the handcuffs. Why didn't she have bruising if he did? Did Walhart purposely put them on too tight? Was Hewitt hurt too? Oh gods, this was all her fault! They shouldn't be in jail on her behalf! What if they got sentenced to Juvy, or even worse, prison? She let her head hang low as she tried to hide the tears sneaking out of her eyes.

"She's crying," Hewitt plainly pointed out.

"What? Oh gods, Robin, don't cry!" Gaius looked frantically between the two before whispering," I don't know what to do. I'm not good with emotions...," The ebony haired boy merely shrugged, not so sure himself," You're no help," He sucked on the lollypop in his mouth with a panicked expression as he tried to come up with how to stop the girl from wailing. Eventually, he settled on plopping down onto the cot next to her and wrapping her into the most awkward hug she had ever experienced. She was so surprised by the sudden action that her sobs stopped. Gaius smiled hopefully,"...Feeling better?"

She pulled herself out of his grasp and brought her knees to her chest," No."

He groaned exasperatedly," Come on, work with me here! How am I supposed to make you feel better if you push me away?"

"Why are you even trying?!" Robin faced him, revealing the frustration and fears she had been desperately trying to hold since she first walked into the band room," I've only ever been mean to you, and I don't think I've even spoken to Hewitt! I don't deserve your kindness. I want you guys to go and take your freedom, but..."

This time, Hewitt was the one to speak up," But what?"

She hugged herself tightly,"...I-I'm too scared to be here alone."

Gaius exchanged a look with the quiet boy, silently beckoning him to come over. Hewitt nodded and gently sat on the other side of Robin, carefully placing his hand on her shoulder before rubbing it comfortingly," Hey Robin?"

"What do you want?"

"We're all scared."

The candy lover chuckled and playfully nudged her," Yeah, we're just good at hiding it."

The white haired girl puffed out her cheeks in frustration," That doesn't answer my question; why are you doing this for me?" While her exterior seemed annoyed, Robin was secretly terrified of their answer. What if they decided that they didn't want to accompany her? How long would she be alone? She unconsciously shuddered at the thought.

Unfortunately for her, the movement didn't go unnoticed by the two boys. Gaius figured that her nerves were starting to get the best of her, and if he didn't reply soon, she'd break down again. He chewed on his lip thoughtfully," I guess that the answer is simple; you've never trusted me, but I've trusted you. You look after Sumia and Chrom, and that means a lot to me. I also can't really blame you for disliking me; I haven't exactly been the best person that as I could have," He fluffed her hair," Besides, no one deserves to have to face this all by themselves. And no matter how much you may deny it, I know you'd do the same thing for me if I was in your position. Right, Hewitt?" The boy nodded," You see? None of us would let this happen to the other. Us cowards have to stick together."

Robin giggled, finally cracking a small smile," Heh. I guess I do feel a lot safer with you guys around."

"Of course you do!" Gaius let his smug exterior drop for a second as he softened," We're not going to let anything happen to you, okay? We've got your back."

In one swift motion, she yanked the two into a tight hug, chuckling at how awkwardly they returned the gesture," Thank you."

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When Noire woke up, her body wracked with pain. She hissed and was about to lay herself back down again when somebody placed a hand on the small of her back," Whoa, whoa, whoa, take it easy there, champ."

The brunette furrowed her eyes in confusion, but accepted the man's help," Priam? W-What happened?"

"Well first of all, we were attacked and you beat the snot out of everyone," He started," You passed out, though, and I had to carry you back to camp. We called your parents-"

Noire couldn't help but jump up in shock, immediately regretting her actions afterwards," How do you know who my parents are?!"

The assistant coach gently lied her back down again," Stop moving around so much or you'll re-fracture your ribs," He leaned back in his chair again once she was settled," Anyways, your parents came clean about the whole future thing. Everyone in the Shepherds knows about you guys now, and some of them are taking responsibility of their kids. Once the sun rose, we took you to your house and you've been sleeping on and off ever since. Your dad called me in to watch you because the rest of your family went to see if Robin is okay."

"W-Where's Robin?"

"She got arrested for her Grimleal mark," Priam crossed his arms," I hear that they took Gaius Milis and Hewitt Smith in as well. Rumors are going around that Walhart is planning something, and that's why your parents asked me to look after you, Emmy, Orie, and Owain until they got back."

Noire felt her heart drop," Robin n-never got arrested in out f-future."

"Don't tell Chrom that; he's freaking out enough as it is," The blue haired man sensed the tense atmosphere in the room and decided it would most likely be a good idea to change the subject," I didn't know you could fight."

"When you're the second oldest, you have to be able to protect the younger ones. If you can't take care of them, then they're forced to fend for themselves. I don't want to put the younger ones into a situation where they'd have to fight," She rubbed her arm uncomfortably, unsure if she should be telling him all this or not," I'm the best at range weapons like bows and guns-"

"I'm sorry," She froze, whipping her head around to face him so fast that it spun. The cocky man she had grown annoyed of was completely gone, replaced by someone who looked more genuine," I underestimated your strength, and I should have listened to you. You're obviously way smarter and more experienced than I am."

Noire sat in awe, unsure of how to respond. Was this the same man as before? She figured that he was just an overly obsessed ego maniac, yet here he was apologizing to her. She smiled softly," It's alright. I'm not angry."

"You have every right to be, though."

"I guess so, but brooding over it won't do either of us any good," This time, the brunette gently pushed herself into a sitting position and turned to the TV," Come on, let's find something to watch to keep us occupied until my parents come back."

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They hadn't allowed anyone other than Frederick and Tharja to talk to Flavia, which left the Exalt's crammed into the station's lobby. Chrom, feeling more restless than he could have ever imagined, insisted that his sister and children take the seats. Lucina and Morgan were crammed together into one of the large armchairs, anxiously watching their father pace back and forth. Lissa sat in the other chair and was braiding and rebraiding her hair over and over again to keep herself occupied. Henry, who was there for both Lissa and Gaius, sat on the arm of his girlfriend's chair and kept a steady stream of lighthearted puns going. Cynthia sat on the floor in front of Lucina and Morgan's armchair, fiddling with her hands and occasionally murmuring something under her breath while Sumia paced alongside Chrom. Anna had popped in briefly, but eventually one of her mom's came and dragged her home, claiming that their daughter did not belong in a police station. Even Markel, one of Hewitt's friends, stopped by while he was walking his dog to see if anything had happened since the three were arrested.

Chrom glanced over at Lon'qu; even though the boy was on duty, he seemed furious with the decision to arrest the students. Rumors had it that he had gotten into a pretty heated argument with Flavia, resulting with him being banned from her office until the situation fixed itself. Chrom didn't know whether to be scared or proud of the boy for taking a stand.

Much to his surprise, even Raimi was there to support the three. Sure, she had never really liked any of them, but even the blonde knew when something was wrong. She proved to be the voice of reason that kept the room from bursting into a panicked frenzy.

Everyone flew out of their seats when Frederick, Tharja, and Flavia finally emerged from her office," What's going to happen to them?" Chrom blurted without a second thought.

"We can't get them out until we know that all three are innocent," The police chief responded sadly.

"But they're innocent," Sumia pointed out," Wouldn't you recognize them if they were criminals?"

Flavia sighed and pinched the brim of her nose tiredly," I wish, but I haven't always been the head chief. We also don't know if they committed crimes in other cities or countries and came here to escape."

Cynthia hugged herself tightly," When will they get released?"

"I wish I knew."

"This is bullshit," Chrom growled angrily," Walhart is insane and we all know it! Did you hear what he said earlier? I don't think his plan ends with arresting them."

The blonde woman rubbed her temples, revealing just how tired and frazzled she was," We can't go off of what we think. Your evidence is hardly valid, while he has several things going for him. I mean, the man is a high school principal; they wouldn't hire him if he had homicidal tendencies."

"Fine. Maybe that's where we start then," Lucina finally spoke up," We look for the man who hired Walhart and see what his intentions are. If he seems normal enough, then we'll know that Walhart is only a man that wants what's best for his school. If not, we have evidence against him and could probably get a warrant to search his house or something."

Flavia stared at the blue haired girl for a long time before shaking her head over-dramatically," I could never do that! That is a ridiculous plan! I will never leave my duties to do something as trivial as that! However, I have no control over what my interns," She added quietly.

Lon'qu and Raimi nodded in understanding," We'll start the secret investigation tomorrow."

"What secret investigation?" The police chief winked," Well, you should all head home now. You're friends will be safe here and there's nothing you can do until we get evidence. Good night everyone."

* * *

**If you read my foreword, you now know why I was so excited to write this chapter; Chrobin+Gaius Developement+FINALLY HEWITT+Cute Children=Uprisingdragon finishes her chapter way ahead of time. Anyways, let's jump right in! Inigo and Levy are headed towards Ylisse, which only means that the other two are going to have to come after them. You know what that means? More future children! Anna and Hewitt moment with Walhart (and a bit of foreshadowing) to get you warmed up to the character I haven't had much of an opportunity to use yet. I will tell you ahead of time that he will be one of my most used OCs (aside from Emmy, I think). I added the cute MorganxCynthia moment for...reasons. Now it's time to get into the super serious part; Robin got freaking arrested. This is one of those plot points that I've been planning since last April or May, so it hit me hard when I realized that _Oh man. I'm actually finally writing this part._ Crazy, huh? We knew about Gaius's Grimleal mark (Chapter 13, I think), but there was no mention of Hewitt's! Don't worry, I've had him be a member of the Grimleal for a super long time. No one knows about it (well...now they do). Have I mentioned how much I love Gaius? I reeaaallly love Gaius. He has so many layers and is so fun to work with! He's definitely one of my favorites to write (I think that Morgan and Chrobin are up there too). Lots of Flavia in this chapter, which was great because it's harder to put her in this story than it would be in a regular fic. Robin is conflicted because she is guilty that she brought the boys into this, but she also doesn't want to face everything by herself. I love these three already, and I can't wait to develop the heck out of their relationships. Cute little NoirexPriam moment, and a heads up towards further chapters! Raimi isn't as horrible as she seems to be anymore, either, so that's good! Flavia wants to do something to help, but she'd get in trouble if she did. Do you think you know who hired Walhart? Hehehe. Alright, summary over! Review time!**

**potatoman098:** **Haha, that part was great! Priam in general is getting more and more fun to write, so expect more of him in the future! Mad Lucina is a force to reckoned with, especially when it has to do with her friends being in trouble. She definitely gets her sense of authority from her parents and her aunt. She is also the third oldest child, which gives her a ton of authority in the first place. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Golden-Lightning:**** Ha, that'll definitely be me when I travel. Can my name mean Fat Bear too? Haha! Silly North Korea. It's probably because they are so cut off from the rest of the world. I figured that I'd just have my brother be my translator or something because I am horrible at learning languages. I'm glad you liked the family supports! They are so adorable together! I really really want to write Nah and Ricken hanging out together (That may be in the next chapter) and surprisingly, I want Kjelle to meet her parents soon as well. Inigo was in this chapter (Finally), and he and Levy are headed to Ylisse! Thank you for reviewing! **

**Amy47101:**** That's okay! I understand being busy and love to hear from you whenever you have time. I myself am bad at reviewing things (I have trust problems, so I always feel like someone might think my comment is stupid or something). I'm not going to say much about PriamxNoire other than Priam is 21, and Noire is 19. The age difference isn't too crazy after all! Looks like Inigo is coming to Lucina (I can't wait to write their reunion)! Thank you for reviewing! **

**Hylianshepherd:** **Family love makes me so happy! Seriously, the parent and child supports that I'll get to write is going to make my heart melt! I'm especially looking forward to Levy and her parents meeting, because their interaction is going to mean a lot. Anna's offspring will also be super interesting to meet, so look forward to that! I'm hoping to have Tharja and Noire talk in the next chapter, but who knows? As I said earlier, I didn't know I was going to have Robin arrested in this chapter (I figured it would be the next one, but I was wrong). Longest story indeed! I'm so proud of myself and so glad to have wonderful readers like you! You guys are what keep me going! Aww, thank you! I'm so happy that you like my story! Thank you for reviewing!**

**supersoldiers3:** **Oh my goodness, that would have been horrible! They are the one relationship (other than OliviaxLon'qu ish) that you absolutely cannot force together! They have to get together on their own time, or it won't work at all! I would have hated myself. Henry's story is darker than you think, bwahaha! I know, right? They are so close to finally getting together, we just have to wait a little bit longer! Gah, the wait is too freaking long, but it will be worth it in the end. I actually like RickenxMaribelle, but it just didn't work out in this story (probably because I _really_ like RickenxNowi). Ricken and Nowi are two of my favorites because while they are both young and like to have fun, they also balance each other out! And Nah as Ricken's daughter is too precious! Gregor and Maribelle is fun for me as well because he is constantly flattering her genuinely, and she doesn't know what to make of it until they start dating. It's too cute (though I do admit that it is an odd ship). Thank you for reviewing! **

**Harrypotterlover:** **Haha, you're so enthusiastic! I've never had someone post a review three times in one week! I think you're new to reading this story (though if I am correct, you are already all caught up), so I will say that I only post on Saturdays (or Sundays if I'm too busy to post it the day before) to get quality chapters up. It is also a good deadline for me because then I write roughly ten pages a week, which is a good way to keep my skills up and running. Thank you for reviewing! **

**I'm pretty sure that the next chapter will be adjustments (and a surprise for Hewitt) to people after the arrest, but the chapter after that is going to be freaking action packed! Now that we're delving back into plot heavy chapters, there won't be as much fluff (who am I kidding? There's always fluff). I am warning you that from this chapter on, the story does get darker than before. There won't be anything too bad, but lots of shit is gonna go down. Stay tuned! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next weekend!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	35. Chapter 35 The Innocent and the Guilty

**Hey guys! Sorry for posting this on Sunday, my day was SUPER busy yesterday. I was home for a total of two hours, so I wasn't able to finish up the chapter and post it. Anyways, this chapter is mainly going set up the plot for the next few chapters, so place close attention to everything because it all has a purpose. Dimitri, Ricken's older brother, is also in this chapter. I've mentioned him before, but he's officially introduced in this chapter. Okay, I'll stop blabbering and let you read ahead! Enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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Robin woke up the next morning snuggled in between her two new roommates, shivering from the frigid temperature of the cell. She was glad that they had allowed her to stay with the boys in a private cell, but the temperature was bitterly cold. She had used that as an excuse to beg the boys to push their cots together and stay warmer that way, but she secretly just wanted to feel safer than she would if she had slept alone. She figured that they felt the same way, because there weren't any objections.

She tried to muffle her giggles as she looked at the sleeping forms of the two boys, trying to figure out how to get out of bed without disturbing them. She was almost successful, but the voice she never wanted to hear again pierced through the air," My, haven't you gotten yourself in trouble?"

The white haired girl jumped out of her skin, glaring at the source of her scare," Validar, what are you doing here? How did you even get in?"

He waved his hand half-heartedly," I have my sources, darling."

"You didn't answer my first question!" Robin yelled, completely forgetting about the two boys sleeping next to her," What the hell are you doing here?!"

The man chuckled, amused by her unease," I just wanted to know if you wished for me to-" His smug expression dropped as his eyes fell on something behind her. Robin rose her eyebrow at him before turning to see what he was staring at.

Hewitt, despite his disgruntled appearance, sat behind her with fire in his eyes," I told you that I didn't want to be involved. You may have been able to rope Aversa into doing your bidding, but I'm going to stick by mom's morals-"

"What good will that do you?" Validar replied irritably. From the looks of it, this wasn't the first time they had this conversation. Did Hewitt and Validar know each other? Robin had just assumes that he had gained his mark in a similar fashion that Gaius did, but there was much more to the story than she thought. Her father continued," Your mother is dead, and your "sister" is an amnesiac. It'd be easier to just-"

"Des died alongside mother-" Hewitt started, but when the weight of the man's words hit him, he slowly turned to face Robin," Y-You're not the amnesiac he's r-referring to, right?"

Validar looked between the two before filling with twisted glee," Wait, you didn't know? I just figured that you two would have figured it out by this point!"

Dread gnawed at Robin's insides," Figured what out?"

"You're real name isn't Robin," Hewitt murmured, his face filling with emotion instead of his usual, stoic appearance," It's Desdemona Grimm. You...You're my sister."

Robin stared at him in a mix of shock and horror. Her brother? She had a brother? Why didn't he recognize her? Didn't Anna tell her that his mother abandoned him and his father was dead? Was he lying? How much was he hiding? All she was able to utter was a small," How?"

"Hewitt was the original vessel, but he took his grandmother's blood type instead of ours. When he failed us, we tried one more time and were successful in creating you."

"Vessel? Vessel for what? What does that even mean?" The white haired girl cried.

Before he could answer her, Hewitt stormed as closely as he could to Validar, emitting a surprisingly terrifying aura," Get out."

His father narrowed his eyes threateningly," It's her birthright-"

"GET OUT NOW!" The voice that boomed from the quiet boy, stirring Gaius from his sleep. The ginger looked from one person to the other and opened his mouth to say something, but Robin shushed him, anxious to see what was going to happen next.

Validar settled on smirking condescendingly," You think you can protect her from her destiny?"

"It's not her destiny I'm going to have to protect her from," The dark haired boy growled," There is no such thing as predetermined fate; both you and I know this. Mom knew that she could keep Des away from it, and I'd be dishonoring her if I let you lay so much as a finger on Robin."

He chuckled," I'm looking forward to the challenge," With that, he left the three alone once more. Gaius looked between the two in confusion, trying to piece together what had just happened. Robin ignored him and rubbed her head furiously, trying to evoke any memory of having a brother.

Hewitt waited until he heard the door shut before leaning against the wall and sliding onto the ground," My...You're alive...," Robin unconsciously stiffened when he turned his gaze to observe her. Despite knowing him beforehand, this felt like a whole new experience; she had a brother, and now that she knew their relation, she really wanted him to like her. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally spoke up," Why the heck are you a senior? You're only sixteen."

Out of everything he could have said, she definitely did not expect that," W-What?"

"You're sixteen?" Gaius snorted," Chrom will love that you're practically two years younger than him...Wait, how do you know how old Robin is?"

"We're siblings."

"Oh, okay-WAIT, WHAT?" The redhead gaped at the pair in shock before over-dramatically placing his hand over his heart," I would've hoped you would trust me enough to tell me such a dark secret. After all, I did go to prison for you."

Robin rubbed her temples," It's not a dark secret, we just didn't know until Validar told us," She sighed in frustration and turned to Hewitt, who was still in a state of shock," This means that you know who I am, right?"

"Unless you've changed in the past six years, then I do," He suddenly became a lot more serious as he stated," There are going to be some things you won't want to remember."

The drum major massaged the back of her head, trying to be rid of the fuzzy feeling clouding her brain," What if I want to know anyways?"

Hewitt looked at her for a really long time, pondering the right answer," At least don't ask for the painful memories all at once. Some of them are...," His gaze fell onto the ground,"...Really bad."

She nodded softly, knowing that he was probably right. After all, he most likely shared some of those memories with her," So...my real name is Desdemona? If that's true, why do I remember the name Robin?"

Hewitt softened slightly," It was mom's nickname for you, cause you liked to sing yourself to sleep and deny it the next day. You see, sometimes robins sing at night, usually under artificial lights. They are often mistaken for nightingale, but since nightingales are proud of their songs, she decided to nickname you Robin. I don't know about you, but I like the name Robin much better than Desdemona."

"I'm still gonna call you Bubbles," Gaius informed," Just because you're the daughter of the crazy Plegia Academy principal and the long lost sister of Zipped Lips here doesn't mean you're going to get treated any differently by me."

Robin snorted," Gee, thanks."

"No prob."

She punched him lightly before turning back to Hewitt and chuckled," So are there any other long lost family members I should know about?" When he smiled sheepishly, her smile dropped," You're kidding."

The trumpet player bit the inside of his cheek," We have one more sister, but she's adopted. I'm not sure if you've met her before, but she sort of sided with Validar because he has that whole I took you in off of the streets thing over her. I've tried to convince her to ignore him and come with us when us three ran away, but she was rather appalled at the idea."

Robin nodded thoughtfully," What's her name? Maybe I've heard of her, and if we work together, we can convince her to join our side."

"Alright. Her name is Aversa LeDoux," When he saw the horrified expression on his sister's face, he cringed," I'm guessing you have met her, then?"

"Several times," The brown eyed girl pouted," She seems to enjoy seeing me squirm."

The eighteen year old sighed, seemingly conflicted on how he should feel over the woman," You say that, and I know that she took part in kidnapping Maribelle and some other shady things, but she was super protective of us when we were younger. I think that she's under the impression that we abandoned her."

Robin had never thought of it that way," Oh, I guess that makes sense. What about our oldest sister? I almost forgot about her."

"Oldest sister?" He furrowed his eyebrow in confusion," It's only us three...do you remember another sibling?"

"No, it's just that there was another woman with Validar the day that Chrom, Frederick, and I went to Plegia. She looked exactly like me, but with shorter, choppier hair. She was also way older."

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully," That's super weird...and creepy. I haven't the slightest idea who you could be talking about."

A lump formed in her throat," If she's not our sister, who is she?"

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Lucina was worried about her family. While she was fairly close to her mother, Morgan and Chrom had a severely strong bond with her. The arrest had hit the two of them hard, and both of them took it different ways. Chrom, on one hand, was starting to isolate himself and go on walks by himself. When she asked Lissa about it, her aunt simply patted her on the shoulder and told her not to worry about it.

Morgan, on the other hand, was completely immersing himself into finding a way to prove Robin was innocent. He visited the library at least twice a day, looking up old newspaper articles with anything related to either Robin Grimm or other people with the same last name. Just when Lucina thought he had run out of resources, he approached her with an old, yellowing newspaper while everyone was eating breakfast," Luci? I have something I need to talk to you about."

"Do you want me to get dad-"

"Given the severity of this article, I strongly advise against it," Her brother plopped down onto her bed next to her and opened to the front page," You see this? It says Marjorie Grimm confirmed dead! That's mom's mom! That's our grandma!"

Lucina furrowed her eyebrows," But we already knew that grandmother had died in a car accident-"

"No," Morgan shook his head and pointed to the description of the article," They said that it was suicide."

"Suicide? But why? Didn't she have her children to look after?"

"My prediction is exactly the reason why we're not going to tell dad about this," Morgan took a deep breath before continuing on," I think she did it for her kids."

The blue haired girl's mouth formed a small O," You mean like Aunt Emmeryn?"

"Yeah," He got up and quickly moved to the door, making sure no one was eavesdropping on them before shutting it," Anyways, here's the plan: It's a good start to have Lon'qu and Raimi check who hired Walhart, but we need to take it a step further."

"How do you suppose we do that?"

"We need to talk to the eyewitness to find out what they saw," He hesitantly pointed to the name," Dad's not going to like this one bit."

Lucina's face paled when she read who the person was," Alastor Exalt. That's..."

"Yup," Her younger brother stuffed the newspaper in his pocket," Looks like we're going to pay grandpa a visit."

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Both Lon'qu and Raimi sat in an uncomfortable silence as they waited for the one in charge of hiring staff. Neither of them were very fond of each other, and as surprising as it may seem, this was their first mission together. Flavia had covered for them, saying that they had a class project on picking a job, and that this was the one they were stuck to interview. That seemed to convince the secretary, so she set the appointment up for the following afternoon.

"So...," Raimi started," I see you've gotten over your gynophobia."

"Sometimes I struggle with it, but I have finally overcome my fear."

The blonde nodded awkwardly," I guess that makes you unstoppable, huh?"

Lon'qu rose his eyebrow at the girl, curious to what she was trying to imply," What is your point?"

"Isn't it obvious? You're going to be the one to take over once Flavia and Basilio retire," She placed her chin in her palm and frowned," You see, my sister is a model of all things, and my older brother is a doctor. If I can amount to anything, how am I supposed to get approval from my parents? Losing class president was bad enough, but now that I'm losing my potential future...," She laughed half heartedly," Unless you have another weakness you wish to tell me."

It surprised Lon'qu how deep other people could be at times. Ke'ri seemed to be just as brave and adventurous as he was, but he discovered that she was ill suited to face danger and scared of what her life would be like. At first glance, Olivia was a shy dancer who allowed people to walk all over her. Deep down, she was extremely passionate and determined to make sure that she had a future. Robin...Robin was still a puzzle to him at times, but he knew that she valued her friends above herself. Now Raimi, the girl who had tried to bully him on several occasions, was coming out and telling him about her insecurities. He pressed his lips together, trying to formulate a good answer," I still have weaknesses. We all do."

The blonde blinked at him," What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that there doesn't have to be one chief," He replied, trying desperately to hide his unease at the prospect of working alongside a woman," While they do fight every year to see who gets the title, we both know that Flavia and Basilio could not function without each other. As much as we may loathe each other now, I don't know if I can imagine working without you. We are a partnership, remember?"

The girl nodded confidently," Of course, although I've never thought of us as partners."

"Well, you should start thinking that way ahead of time so that you'll be used to the idea when it actually happens."

The two fell back into a more comfortable silence until the door finally opened," Excuse me for being late," The pair's jaws dropped in disgust when they saw the plump form of a purple haired man (woman?) strut in and drop in the seat across from them," My name is Mr. Depraysie, but you may call me Excellus."

Lon'qu was still in shock at how hideous the man was, so Raimi took over and shook his hand," Nice to meet you. Excuse my partner, he's shy at first."

"No bother at all, dear. Ah, I remember when I was young and in love as well," The two gaped at him in horror, causing the strange man to laugh," I'm kidding. So, now that formalities are somewhat out of the way, let's get down to business."

The boy recovered by this point and nodded at Raimi, who took out her notepad and pen," You know the basis of our project, correct?"

"Yes, and I'm quite flattered that you two chose little old me as your prime subject!"

The two shared an unimpressed look before starting the interrogation," I hear that the most recent person you hired was Principal Walhart. What made you come to this conclusion-"

The purple haired man spoke up quickly," Actually, I've recently hired this wonderful janitor named Mike. He's a wonderful man, and he tells the most adorable stories about his grandchildren. You see, there's this one-"

"As entertaining as that sounds, we are looking to do a report over the hiring process of someone who has authority and respect from students and staff alike," Raimi interrupted.

"We think that it will grab the readers' attention better," The percussionist added.

Excellus narrowed his eyes suspiciously," I see. Well, he was obviously the best pick because of the amount of authority he has and his determination to...," His voice trailed off as his eyes fell on his empty wrist," Wow, would you look at the time? I should get going-"

Lon'qu got to his feet and loomed over the shorter man," Is there something you're hiding from us, Mr. Depraysie?"

"Why would you accuse me of such a thing-"

"Sit."

The plump man grumbled, lingering a few more seconds before trudging back to his chair," Fine, if you want top he truth, you have to promise not to put it in your paper. Walhart would kill me if he found out."

Unknown to Excellus, Raimi clicked the recorder she had hidden in her coat pocket on," Go ahead. I won't even write it down," To prove her point, she laid her notepad on the desk and neatly folded her hands," Go ahead."

"As you probably know, he hates the Grimleal with a burning passion. He wants to wipe them all out once and for all for killing his wife. I happen to agree with him, because the cult gives me the heebie-jeebies," He shuddered for emphasis," Anyways, he had heard word that this school was riddled with the Grimleal, and he figured that the best way to cleanse it was to make sure that those students were carefully watched."

"Those students were arrested," Lon'qu grumbled.

"Well they obviously deserved it," He feigned surprise at the students' shock at his comment," What? They were Grimleal? Don't you feel safer with them behind bars?"

"I think we're done here," Raimi nearly spat. She recovered quickly from her venomous outburst and shook Excellus's hand," Thank you for taking time out of your day to speak to us."

"My pleasure, my dear," As the two left the room, his smirk grew even darker," My pleasure."

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"Chrom?" The blue haired boy looked up from his spot in politics and had to hold back the grimace when he saw Marie standing in front of him," Can I talk to you about something?"

"I'm still dating Robin, even if she was arrested," He grumbled, already annoyed by the amount of his fan girls trying to get with him. He felt bad about it at first, but once the sixth freshman approached him, he was done. Right now, Marie was the ninth.

The girl cringed," Yeah...about that..."

"What about it?"

She hesitantly sat down next to him, fiddling with her hands nervously," I...uh...," Marie squeezed her eyes shut, dreading what she was about to say," I told Principal Walhart about Robin."

Chrom wanted to say he was surprised, but the nagging voice in the back of his head said that he knew it. Of course one of his jealous fangirls did it. They were always leaping at the chance to get together with him. He clenched his jaw, trying to keep his temper from blowing over," I already know why you did it, so you better have a damn good apology."

The sophomore squeaked," I didn't think that he'd arrest her! At most I figured he'd suspend her or something-"

"That's not an apology," He growled menacingly.

Marie practically shrank underneath his gaze," I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry that I've been such a jerk to her and some of the other girls all year because I...I'm jealous of them. They have everything! They're all so pretty and nice, and I want to be just like them! The only thing I accomplished was being a huge jerk," She sniffled," I-I even revoked my membership in the Chrom Fan-club, if that means anything to you."

He rubbed his temples, not as angry as before and more confused than ever," So you got my girlfriend arrested because you're jealous of her?"

"I dunno, it's not that out of character for me," She answered sheepishly," I didn't mean her any harm! Is there anything I can do to help?"

Chrom wasn't sure whether or not he should be taking her seriously. This was the girl that had been a huge bully throughout the year, but here she was being genuine. As much as he hated himself for it, he always sought out the best in people. That, and the sophomore looked like she was on the verge of tears," It's fine. I'm actually impressed that you told me the truth."

"Y-You are?"

He nodded," It's a relief to know there's not someone out to get Robin in the band. I was worried that there might have been a Grimleal in our class that wanted to hurt her."

Marie bit her lip," What about Gaius and Hewitt? Did you know they were Grimleal?"

"I knew Gaius was, but Hewitt-" He paused," I didn't know about him...You don't think that he wanted to be with Robin when she was arrested, do you?" The sophomore shrugged nervously," Gods, why does this keep getting more and more complicated? More importantly, who exactly is Hewitt Smith?"

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When Ricken agreed to take Nah in, he didn't account for the fact that his parents would start to get suspicious. Firstly, they didn't really know she was there. He had to keep that hidden so that they wouldn't kick her out. Secondly, it was getting harder to sneak her out in the morning to go to school and sneak her food every day (she often insisted that in the future she had gone several days without food sometimes and could handle it, but he refused to let her live that way again).

The day his parents finally caught him was the day Dimitri came home to visit. Ricken and Nah we're about to leave the school and walk home when the older brother surprised them at the entryway of the school," Hey, short stuff!"

"Dimitri?" Ricken grinned," What are you doing here? I thought that you weren't coming until Thanksgiving!"

"I couldn't miss my baby brother's band go to State championships, could I?" The college student ruffled his hair and turned his attention to Nah," Oh, are you Nowi? I thought you were supposed to have green hair."

He shook his hands frantically," Oh no, you've got the wrong idea! Nah is my dau-I mean, friend. That's right, we're just friends."

Dimitri rose his eyebrow," You're not cheating on your girlfriend, right?"

"Gods no! Nowi is perfect! Why would I ever cheat?"

The college student shrugged," I don't know, but you're being super suspicious right now," He nudged his younger brother," You know you can tell me anything, right? I'm the one that's here to tell you if whatever your hiding is stupid or not."

Ricken held his hands up in defeat," Fine, but this is going to be super weird."

"Lay it on me, bro."

The freshman took a deep breath and sputtered," Nah is my daughter from the future."

Dimitri stared at his brother for what seemed like an eternity, causing both him and Nah to become extremely uncomfortable," You have a future daughter?" He dead-panned.

"No, you have to believe me! We have the same exact hair color, she has Nowi's eyes, and all of my other friends' children came back too! Like Lucina and Morgan and Noire-"

"I think this little girl is scamming you, Short Stuff."

Nah fumed," I'm not little and I am not scamming him! Do you need proof? I'll give it to you on a silver platter!" Without warning, she began spewing out everything she knew about her uncle," Your full name is Dimitri Xavier Mork. You're in your forth year of college, and I already know about my cousin."

Ricken's eyes widened to the size of frisbees," Wait, what?! Cousin?! Dimitri, you also get a child in the future?! I thought you said you never wanted to be married."

The older boy's face had lost all its color as he looked at Nah," What is the mother's name?"

"Ruby," Nah frowned apologetically," I don't know her last name because she changed it after you two eloped."

The clarinet player sent his daughter a pointed look," Hey, didn't you say there was a rule about not revealing relationships-"

"I didn't reveal anything," The twelve year old crossed her arms," It already happened."

The weight thrown onto Ricken was unlike anything he had ever experienced. His brother, the one he had always trusted and looked up to, got eloped without telling anyone because he knocked up another girl. He could hardly look at Dimitri," Why didn't you just tell me?"

"I was hoping to hold it off until after I graduated and pretend that I had proposed. We were planning on putting our baby up for adoption, but from what Nah is implying...," He swallowed thickly," This is too much. I was hoping to take an escape from all of it by coming here."

Nah rubbed her arms uncomfortably," I didn't mean to cause you two to fight-"

"I need to go for a walk," Ricken murmured, leaving his daughter behind with his brother. What else was he supposed to do? He had always looked up to Dimitri, and now here he was keeping secrets from him. Heck, he probably was the father of one of the future children-

Hold on. There must be a future child if Nah knew about the scandal. Was he or she dead, or did they come back with the rest of the kids. Ricken swallowed thickly, dreading the complicated mess he was about to get himself and his family into.

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**So much stuff happened! So, we got a bunch of information on who Robin and Hewitt are. They're brother and sister! Aversa is their half sister, while Robin and Hewitt are full siblings. Robin is also supposed to be a junior, but everyone just figured that she was 18, so they put her with the seniors, haha. Morgan and Lucina are going to interogate their grandfather, AKA Chrom's crazy father. Excellus is the man that hired, which probably makes a lot more sense to you guys to why Walhart was the one that got hired. Lon'qu and Raimi get along now, too! Marie was explained more in this chapter as well (I would freak out if I was in the same situation as well), so she's not that bad either anymore. Finally, Dimitri is the daddy of another future child! I think that _ along with _ are the only OC children coming, and they will most likely arrive together. Keep an eye out! Review time!**

**Another Shy Gamer:**** I'm so glad you like it! Haha, we share similar interests! That's so cool that you want to be a band teacher! I thought of that because I can usually learn instruments pretty easily, but I prefer stage management. Marching Band is the greatest because of all the friends you make and all the memories that stick with you forever! Hadlee (one of my OCs (Emmy's friend)) is a tuba player! She's tiny too, and I think it's hilarious that there's Kellam, who is fairly large, next to the tiny freshman Hadlee! It's too cute! Thank you for reviewing! **

**potatoman098:** **Priam has been in so many chapters in a row that it was weird for him not be in this one, lol. He is probably super attracted to girls that can kick his butt, lets be honest. Inigo is super complicated because one minute he's trying to make people feel better, the next he's using people to get ladies. I have to make sure he's both super sweet and somewhat annoying. Also, he probably hates not being able to do anything to help the others, so that's why he left. Flavia is the brains, Basilio is the muscles. Thanks for reviewing! **

**Golden-Lightning:**** No longer am I a dragon; Just call me Fat Bear. Ugh, I want to tell you spoilers about their jail time, but this is a huge part of the story! So much stuff happens according to certain things, and I don't want to spoil it for anyone! Thanks, that's nice of you to say! I'm super excited to finally get to write Alastor Exalt, because he is going to have so many layers. What's interesting about him is that he has absolutely no redeeming qualities, haha. I agree, languages are hard. Thanks for reviewing! **

**Kit-Cat Star:**** They will watch each others' backs, so I'm not worried at all! They're all tough, so they'll come out okay. Inigo is FINALLY coming back, jeez-O-pete. He's also bringing lovely Levy along with him to spice up the story! Thank you for reviewing! **

**Amy47101: ****Walhart is a huge bully, and the more I write him, the more twisted he becomes. Now we have an idea of how Hewitt has a mark, but he's still got a bit of mystery to him. For example, why did Hewitt tell Anna is dad was dead? Is their mother truly dead? Will we ever know? They'll be fun to write, because I have a feeling Priam is going to try and impress her. Well, Inigo is on his way to Ylisse. Who knows what will happen? It's cool, I don't mind! I just love getting feedback from people! Thank you for reviewing! **

**MissShane12:**** Thank you! This is the part of the story where it's very different from the game, because I obviously can't go to war with another school. I'm glad that you guys like it! Chrom did find out who did it, and he definitely had to keep himself together, or else he would have lost his temper really badly. Thanks for reviewing!**

**EcoMagic:**** That's alright! I understand being busy, I am always doing something. I'm glad that you were in bed when you fell asleep, it would be uncomfortable to wake up in an awkward position. I'm glad that you like the story anyways! It was time that they revealed it, because it would have been hard to keep a secret for much longer. Cynthia was actually going to tell her mother who she was, but Chrom cut her off because of her hair color. It would have been obvious if she said she was Sumia's daughter and was a redhead. Nah and Severa are also adorable with their parents! I don't blame you; Hewitt has always been odd, but he's full of surprises! How could Robin stay mad at Gaius when he gave up his freedom for her? She felt more guilty around them at that point. Haha, I usually just switch between the two so that it's not too repetitive. Thanks for reviewing! **

**supersoldiers3:** **So many surprises in this chapter and the last chapter! So many things we didn't know about characters we thought we knew! Thank you! From what I'm reading, no one expected that from Hewitt. I'm waiting to see if anyone guessed that he was Robin's brother, but I'm pretty sure that I didn't hint on that one very much. You are pretty good at predicting my story, so I'm excited to see if this one caught you off guard or not! Aww, thank you so much! I'm always flattered when people compliment my work! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Sorry this chapter was somewhat short, but I hope you guys liked all the twists and turns! The next chapter may or may not be super heavy and shocking, so stay tuned! I'll see you guys next week! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next weekend!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	36. Chapter 36 Inexorable Death

**Hey guys! Happy Halloween! Funny that my Halloween chapter was almost two or so weeks ago...hehe. Anyways, this chapter is action packed (accept for one part). If you see that title of this chapter and recognize it, then you'll have a pretty good idea what you're preparing yourself for. Happy reading!  
**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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The fifth day in jail was the worst the three encountered by far. The first two days went by like a breeze due to the fact that they were still new and not situated. It was the third day that they started to get anxious, the forth where their nerves ate away even more at them, and by that Friday, almost all hope was gone.

They were not allowed visitations because Walhart was firm on his belief that they would try and escape or convert their friends. It wasn't uncommon for them to only see one other person today, and if it wasn't either of the Chiefs or their apprentices, the officer would treat them coldly and hardly spare them a glance.

Gaius woefully fiddled with his lollypop stick (he had run out of candy the day before) and stared up at the ceiling," How many days have we been stuck in this hell-hole?"

"I don't even know anymore," Robin whined as she braided and rebraided her own hair," All I know is that I don't want to be here another minute."

"We could try to break out, ya know," The redhead commented as he twisted the trash in his hands," I have picked plenty of locks-"

"We know that we can't do that," Hewitt grumbled from his spot on his bed. His eyes were lazily watching a spider make a web in the corner of the room, finding it the only form of entertainment he could get," Then we'd have to be on the run and never see either of your significant others or children again," He sighed before adding," We will have to keep that skill in mind, though."

His newly found sister rose her eyebrow," Why? Didn't you just say that we shouldn't break ourselves out?"

"It may be just a hunch of mine, but I'm fairly certain that Walhart wants all three of us caged up for a reason," He turned to fully face the two," If we hear so much as a whisper about Walhart coming for us, we'd better try and get out of here."

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Say'ri was starting to get worried. She had woken up that morning, only to find Tanith gone with a quickly written note explaining that she was staking out Walhart again that morning. Although this wasn't something out of the ordinary for either herself of Cobalt to do, it unnerved her greatly when Tanith left and did it on her own.

She brushed off the bad feeling swirling around in her stomach and went to school as normal that morning, constantly reassuring herself that she'd see her younger friend at lunch. Tiki, who had hit it off with the girl at camp the previous weekend, couldn't help but notice the girl's nerves during their. Study hall," Say'ri? You seem...anxious."

"Is it that obvious?" She grumbled softly.

The green haired girl nodded," Blatantly so," She patted her friend comfortingly on the shoulder before reaching in her backpack and bringing out an apple," Here. Eating will make you feel better."

Say'ri shook her head," I have to stay focused, right now. There's not time for pleasantries, not when Tanith is still missing."

"Isn't that your sweet, purple haired friend?" The clarinetist nodded," She seems tough. I bet she just got held up or something," When Say'ri didn't respond, she pushed the apple back towards her friend," Eat it."

"No."

"Come on, it'll make you feel better!"

"It will not!"

"But-"

"No, and that's final!"

Tiki puffed out her cheeks and stubbornly crossed her arms," Oh, you're no fun!"

The dark haired girl threw up her hands in exasperation," I can't believe you right now! You're acting like child! What would Chon'sin think if they saw you acting like this? You have quite the reputation to uphold."

"I don't care! Let them think what they will," For a split second, the girl showed a flicker of vulnerability," I stopped caring what people though about me a long time ago."

Say'ri was having none of that," Tiki Wysedraak is a rarefied and exalted being according to some people in our city due to your fame. Acting like you don't care about what others think might make you come off as standoffish."

"That's preposterous. And if my "sublimeness" excludes me from being myself, I say good riddance! You forget that I gave up my fame many years ago because I didn't like being above others," The tone of her voice stated that her word was final," Now, are you going to eat the apple or not?"

The senior groaned," Tiki-"

"Do you want an apple or not?"

Say'ri shook her head," I'm worried about larger things than fruit, Tiki!" When she saw her friend deflate at the harshness of her words, she finally relented,"...I'm sorry. I shouldn't be taking my anger out on you. If you say that the apple will make me feel better, I might as well try it."

The retired model clapped her hands in glee," Splendid! Now open wiiiide..."

She watched in embarrassment as Tiki reached to stuff the apple in her mouth," You can't possibly...?! If people saw you doing this they might think-Hrrmph?!" She was effectively cut off when the senior succeeded in her attempt to feed her friend.

Said girl smiled cheekily," Delicious, isn't it?"

Say'ri's rolled her eyes and took the fruit out of her mouth," You could have just handed it to me."

"You needed to loosen up a bit," She teased, jabbing her cheek playfully in the process," Besides, you and I both know that you wouldn't have eaten it if I had not forced you."

The dark haired girl grumbled, but she didn't disagree with the percussionist. She shouldn't be having fun while her brother and her friend were still missing. She needed to stay focused, but she also didn't want to let down Tiki. How curious...

Soon enough, the lunch bell rang and everyone filed out of their class to head to the cafeteria. Unlike usual, Tiki decided to follow Say'ri that day. While she didn't really want to be followed around at the moment, the green haired girl did a good job keeping the conversation light and stress free. It was only when they found Cobalt that things started to get even more complicated," Have you seen Tanith?"

Cobalt shook his head frantically," No, I can't find her anywhere! She's not picking up her phone, she's not at lunch, and none of her other friends have seen her all day! What if something happened to her? She's only fifteen-"

Much to everyone's surprise, it was Tiki that took initiative and clamped her hands on his shoulders to calm him," Hey, it's going to be okay! You're right, she may be in danger, but we all know that she won't give in easily."

"That doesn't make me feel any better."

"Does she have a tracking device on her phone?" Say'ri spoke up," If so, we might be able to find her."

Cobalt nodded and pulled his phone out," I'm on it."

"Good. I'm going to investigate Walhart and see if he's doing anything suspicious," Say'ri turned to Tiki," You won't want to get involved in this, so you-"

"Who says that I don't?"

The clarinetist pinched the bridge of her nose," It would be stupid to get on Walhart's bad side-"

"It's even stupider to be on his good side," She crossed her arms defiantly," I'm helping."

Say'ri desperately sent a glance over to Cobalt, who shrugged in response," Whether you like it or not, she's already involved. Might as well put her to use."

"You're only saying that because you want to get Tanith back faster."

"And you don't?" The former drum major opened her mouth to retaliate, but as usual, her friend had a point," Let's not waste any more time."

Say'ri took a deep breath," Fine. Come on, Tiki, we've got work to do."

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Nah awkwardly sat in the corner for recess, watching the other students take advantage of the beautiful day to play sports and gossip with their friends. Although several people had approached Nah and somewhat befriended her, she preferred to keep away from them for their own protection. After all, she wasn't quite sure what would happen to her if they prevented the bad future. If she disappeared, she didn't want too many people to mourn her.

She didn't mind being lonely as much anymore. Her parents were great, despite her mother acting more like a child than she did and her father refusing to reveal anything about his relationship with Nowi. Dimitri was nice too, even though his first introduction to her was a bit odd. It was also good to see Emmy, one of the only children close to her age aside from Levy.

Just as her thoughts were about to slip deeper into a different topic, a low grumble from behind her caused her to jump out of her skin," Relax; It's just us."

Her horror quickly shifted into joy when she saw Gerome, Brady, and Minerva standing behind her. She sent a cautious glance back at her classmates before sneaking off and hugging Gerome tightly," I haven't seen you in almost two weeks!"

He awkwardly patted her back," It wasn't my intention to leave you behind, I just had a pressing matter to attend to. Speaking of which, have you seen Inigo or Levy? They snuck off to come here."

"Why'd they have to sneak away from you?" Nah asked, unconsciously sending a suspicious look towards Brady.

The auburn haired boy narrowed his eyes at her in return," Whatcha look'in at?"

When she realized that she was being blatantly obvious with her accusation, she tried to brush it off as if it was nothing," I don't, er...Nothing in particular."

"Then why ya makin' eyes at me? You got something to say or what?"

"N-nothing!"

Gerome rolled his eyes," This is ridiculous. While you two bicker, I'm going to search for the other two in this area. I'll come for you before I leave," With that said, the dark haired boy and his dog left them alone to bicker.

Nah swallowed uncomfortably, causing the boy to groan," What? Something wrong with you? You coming down with something?"

"N-no, nothing like that. I'm fine..."

Brady snorted," Well, you ain't ACTING fine. It's freaking me out! You don't go all quiet when you talk to any of the others."

"That's not true! Er, no, it is, but...," She straightened up and tried to divert the subject," I'm not being quiet! I'm the same as always..."

"Sure, fine. Whatever," He watched her squirm uncomfortably for a few seconds before speaking back up again in exasperation,"...You scared of me? Is that it? I give ya the heebie-jeebies?"

Nah immediately jumped to her own defense," I'm not scared! Why would I be scared?! That's crazy talk! You're crazy!"

"Oh, really?!"

She squeaked and sputtered," Y-yes, really...," To keep what little pride she had, she repeated," I'm not scared."

Brady stared at her for a long time with an unimpressed look before sagging his shoulders," Well, whatever it is, I ain't sticking around so you can gawk," He waved halfheartedly at her before heading in the direction Gerome went," See ya' around."

Nah waited until he was completely out of sight to try and calm her rushing heart," I j-just wanted to talk. When I see that face, though, I clam up...," She ran her hand through her bangs and let out a puff of air," It's not my fault he looks so scary!"

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It seemed that the only way to get to the jail was to find someone to give them a ride, and since Owain was one of the only future children who had any idea how to drive, it was only natural that he would be the one to take Lucina and Morgan. They had updated him on their suspicions and he agreed to help in any way he could as long as they left Emmy out of it. He mentioned something about the guilt he had for being separated from her when they time traveled, and he didn't want her to get in anymore trouble that she would have to face by herself.

The three had lied to their parents, saying that they were going to see a movie that had just recently come out and set off as soon as they got the okay. As they drove over, they bounced questions that they would ask him off of each other. Whenever a question sounded too suspicious or vague, they dropped it and replaced it with another. By the time they reached the jail, the three were completely prepared.

Or at least, they thought they were.

While the other two were younger and knew less about the man, Lucina had heard the entire story from her father at the beginning of the school year when she was still posing as Marth. From what Chrom had told them, his father was an abusive man set on revenge against his wife, who had cheated on him and had a different man's child. That alone made her concerned for Owain's safety, but as long as they didn't accidentally give away who they were, she hoped that they'd come out unscathed.

The police were weary of the children at first, but they eventually allowed them to go in and speak to Alastor. The three patiently sat at a table that was bolted to the ground, anxiously waiting for the man that they were forbidden to ever see.

The time for him to come in finally arrived, revealing a man that looked frighteningly similar to Chrom; The two shared the same striking blue hair and eyes, but there were streaks of gray and wrinkles covering the man. He had also opted to grow a scruffy beard, probably to make him seem scarier than he already was. Unfortunately, he was incredibly built after years of building up strength.

Owain, who had let the other two take the chair, leaned farther away from the man. Although it was just a rumor that his parents had stomped out early on, he had heard that if given the chance, Alastor would kill Lissa. He also knew that this man was also the one that killed his real grandparents, along with several other people. Without warning, Mr. Exalt's eyes caught his, causing a chill to run down his back," Who are you three, and why do you wish to speak with me?"

Lucina blinked in surprise. She hadn't expected the man to be so refined in his speech because of his actions, but she had also forgotten that the Exalt family was raised in riches. She cleared her throat, diverting his attention back to her," We're here to talk to you about the death of Marjorie Grimm."

He burst out laughing, immediately breaking his proper image," Why the hell do you want to talk about something as insignificant as that? You do realize that you're talking to a serial killer, right? I can tell you so many more details about the deaths by my hand-"

"Please, sir," Morgan interrupted," We really need to know exactly what happened that night."

Alastor's snickers died down as he narrowed his eyes at the boy," Just find the paper. It'll tell you what happened-"

"Was there anything more? Anything out of the ordinary?"

Mr. Exalt observed the three wearily, as if battling internally with himself. With a sideways glance to the policeman supervising their conversation, he spoke up irritably," Ha, you hear that? They're willing to hear the truth that you lot refused to publish! You want to know what I really saw?" He smirked," I saw five figures draped in black surrounding the woman. She has no choice but to jump off the bridge. Kept yelling something about protecting her children and keeping them safe. I didn't realize she was talking to me until she jumped and I heard the gasps of two kids behind me. The weird part is that the older one, a boy I think, took that little one and ran off immediately after instead of mourning their mother or screaming. When I looked back to the figures, they were gone. I told the police that, but they didn't believe me. Said I was seeing things," He laughed bitterly," The oddest part, though, is that they never found her body. They brushed it off as the river current carrying it away, but I knew better."

"Don't believe what he says," The nearby cop warned," He's losing his mind-"

"I AM NOT!" He boomed, slamming his hands on the table so hard that rattled. The kids were so surprised by his sudden change of mood that they jumped back," I am not crazy, nor am I going crazy! You blame it on the loss of my wife and daughter, but you know what? I'm glad they're dead! They deserved it for double-crossing me! They deserved the horrible, bloody, awful-"

"Shut up!" The room automatically fell silent as the occupants turned to face the two people they dreaded most; Chrom and Lissa. As soon as Alastor realized who they were, he smirked and sank back into his seat. The children, on the other hand, grimaced," We'll talk about this later," Chrom growled," Go to the car."

The trio nodded shamefully and exited with their tails between their feet, but before the siblings could leave, their father spoke up," It's about time you came to visit your father."

Chrom glanced over at Lissa, silently begging her to go on with the kids. Instead, she crossed her arms bravely and turned to face the man that had killed her parents," You're not my father."

"I wasn't talking to you, was I?" He replied coolly," You're nothing but a bastard child. I wish I would've known sooner, because your sorry ass would either be on the street or have my-"

"Shut up! Just fucking shut up!" Chrom yelled, stepping in front of of his sister," You want to know why we never came to visit? We don't want to come see the man that would have killed us if we stayed! We didn't want to see the man that forced us to grow up when we were hardly out of elementary school! You killed our mother! You killed Lissa's dad! You killed Gangrel's parents and several other people just because you had a temper tantrum-"

"IT WAS NOT A TANTRUM!" Although the force behind his voice was enough to make even the cop jump, neither Chrom or Lissa moved a muscle," I loved your mother! I loved you three! You were my entire world, and it fell apart as soon as she cheated on me!"

Lissa glared at him," You don't kill the people you love!"

"It was the only way to ensure that she would stay mine," He snapped back wickedly," If I couldn't have her, then no one could. Simple as that," He turned his focus to the older boy," We could have lived such a wonderful life together, my boy. No cheating wives or bastard daughter or grimleal-"

Chrom kept his stance firm," The cheating wife you're referring to is my mother, the bastard daughter you speak of his my sister, and I bet you'll be so proud to realize that my girlfriend and one of my best friends are both grimleal," Just like that, the smug look dropped off of his father's face," I'm not going to abandon them for the likes of you."

He shrugged nonchalantly," There is a solution to everything, my boy. I'll just kill them all, and then you'll have to come to me."

Before his son could respond, the cop grabbed Alastor by his shoulders and yanked him up," That's enough out of you. Time to go back to your cozy jail cell."

"You'll come to me," Mr. Exalt smirked," Just you wait."

As soon as he was escorted out, the two slumped their shoulders in relief," If I never see that man again, it would still be too soon," Lissa mumbled, shakily running her hand through her hair," How are you holding up, Chrom?"

He sighed," You're the one that took all the verbal abuse, remember?"

"I wish I didn't."

"That would make two of us, then," He wrapped his arm around his little sister and guided her out the door," What's important now is to figure out why the hell our children came here."

Just like that, Lissa's personality switched from depressed to protective," I know! What if they had gotten hurt? He would've tried to attack Owain if he knew he was my son! Did they have any idea how much danger they were putting themselves into?!" Almost as if on cue, they reached the car that they told their children to wait by," What were you guys thinking?!"

Before anyone could speak up, Morgan blurted," It was all my idea! I was the one that came up with the idea to come here, not Lucina or Owain," He lowered his head," I'll take whatever punishment you-"

"No, it's not just your fault," His older sister interrupted," I had just as much of a part in this as you did. You can't take the blame entirely on yourself."

Owain nodded in agreement," As a fellow justice cabal member, I am obligated to help my brother in arms whenever the time calls for it! I am honored to have served you in your time of need."

As much as they wanted to punish their kids, neither could bring themselves to do so when they were standing up for each other," Fine," Chrom crossed his arms, demanding their attention," You won't get in trouble if you tell us why you came."

"We were trying to figure out a way to clear mom and uncle Hewitt's names," Lucina explained," Morgan found an article about her mom-"

"Hold on a second," The blue haired drum major blinked," Did you say Uncle Hewitt?!"

"Yeah," Lucina responded, almost as if it was the simplest thing in the world," He's mother's older brother. Didn't you know that?"

He shook his head," No, I didn't. Why didn't you mention it sooner?"

"I haven't had the chance to, remember? We just told everyone who we were on Saturday night, and they were arrested the following Monday. I haven't had a chance to talk to him yet," Lucina smirked at her father's confusion," We can talk about this later. Let's get back to what I was saying about Grandma Marjorie."

Morgan added on," I found a newspaper article with mom's mom on it that said she committed suicide, but that was too out of the ordinary for us to believe. It turns out that your dad was the only witness, so we came to ask him if he saw anything else."

His older sister shuddered," He mentioned something about five dark figures forcing her off the bridge and two children, presumably mother and uncle Hewitt, running off in the distance. They mentioned never finding the body, so we're not quite sure if she's dead or not."

"Guys, you're missing out on something important," Owain started without using his usual colorful language," Mr. Exalt said something about five dark figures that hunted and killed people, right? Doesn't that sound familiar?"

Lissa's face paled, automatically knowing what her son was implying," Oh my goodness, they were in Henry's story. Does that make them...real?"

"There's only one way to find out," Chrom frowned," We're going to have to talk to your boyfriend about how true his story was."

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Cobalt had never been more nervous in his life.

First of all, being thrown into danger wasn't something he had anticipated doing. He was used to being that one screwy kid that always lied their way out of doing homework in middle school and told teachers that they were going to the library when they really went in the bathroom stall to play video games. He wasn't like Chrom with a tragic backstory, therefore he wasn't used to the stress that was starting to enclose him.

Honestly, he would have left a long time ago if it wasn't Say'ri that needed his help. The two had been best friends since kindergarten, and leaving her to fend for herself was out of the question. It didn't help that the girl he had a huge crush on also volunteered to go, which gave him two people to look out for. He would be damned if either of them got hurt.

Cobalt was stuck trying to act like he didn't care that his parents called him every night, begging him to come home because of the rumors that floated around Ylisse. He was trapped in what seemed like an eternal lie that would only end up with him either losing Say'ri or Tanith, and the stress was eating away at him.

Today was the worst day he had encountered yet. After panicking all day, he finally convinced Say'ri to call the police and get them involved. Chief Flavia seemed more than happy to investigate Walhart and jumped on the case as soon as possible, deciding to bring Chief Basilio, the two interns, and two other officers along with. It took a lot of convincing for them to allow Say'ri and himself to tag along, but after constant refusals to let them stay behind, she caved in and let them come.

His nerves constantly grew as they drove to their destination, unintentionally causing Say'ri to become anxious as well," I'm sure she'll be fine," She mumbled half-heartedly, saying it half to him and half to herself.

"Y-Yeah," He agreed weakly, instead thinking of what he would do if something bad did happen. Would he be able to forgive himself again? He sighed forlornly.

Flavia hummed from the front of the car," We're here. It might be best if you two stay back here to avoid any danger that might be present, okay?" The nodded uncertainly," Good. Make sure to stay put," With that, herself and the other cops hesitantly exited their cars and edged towards the isolated house.

"Do you think my brother is here too?"

Cobalt glanced over at Say'ri, who was so nervous she was shaking," I...I don't know. I would say that I hope so, but I know that Walhart would torture the shit out of him if he kept him alive," Realizing the unintentional harshness of his words, he backtracked," I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"I understand," She hugged herself tightly," I'm just as nervous as you are."

Before he could respond, the voice he had been dreading hearing all day spoke up from outside," It looks like I've been caught in the act," Walhart boomed," But luckily for me, you're going to let me escape," Say'ri and Cobalt exchanged confused looks before trying to find where the man they hated was," Now, if you would please step aside, Miss Carolee and I are going to be on our way."

The words hit Cobalt like a pile of bricks, and before he could process what he was doing, he was grabbing a spare gun from the front seat and bursting out of the car to aim it at Walhart. The principal had Tanith in a headlock and a gun pointed at his face, and although everything happened so quickly, he noticed Cobalt's sudden movement and shifted his gun quickly to point it at him. The blue haired boy paid no mind to that at all and shakily shot at Walhart. Two deafening bangs filled the air, silencing everyone on the sight. Apparently Cobalt hit him, because the man recoiled and released Tanith.

The purple haired girl burst from the man's hold and straight for Cobalt, screaming his name with tears pouring down her cheeks. His first initial reaction was confusion, but the sharp pain in his stomach pulled his attention downwards. His eyes widened in a mix of horror and shock when he saw blood soaking through his shirt. Had...had he been shot?

As soon as reality hit him, his knees gave out on him and he collapsed on the ground. Tanith and Say'ri were by his side in seconds, and although he could faintly hear the two Chiefs arguing in the background, he was more focused on his friends' words," Come on, Cobalt, you have to stay with us!"

"I-I'm so s-sorry!" Tanith sobbed," This i-is all m-my fault!"

He tried to talk, but the pain was starting to set in," I-I'm glad...it w-was me...and not..."

Say'ri shook her head feverishly," Don't talk like that, you're not going to die! Save your strength,-"

"...a-and not either...n-not...," He cringed, hating the taste of blood filling his mouth,"...J-Just tell...T-Tanith...tell her...t-tell her it's...n-not...,"

Say'ri gently hushed him, trying to keep her tears in," Save your strength, Cobalt...Please, if you're not going to do it for yourself, do it for us," Thankfully for her, he managed a weak nod and let himself rest.

His best friend refused to leave his side, but Tanith had run off to frantically pull someone to help him," He's dying! Please, we need to save him!" She cried," Please!"

Basilio growled and turned to Lon'qu and Raimi," This has gotten to damn dangerous. Take that boy to the hospital, now!"

Raimi nodded and rushed to get to Cobalt's aid, but Lon'qu shook his head," I can't leave you here, sir-"

"You can and you will," Basilio ordered," This isn't an exercise. Lives are on the line boy, so get your as in that cop car and take that kid to the hospital!" When he still didn't look convinced, the chief yelled," GET YOUR ASS OUT OF HERE, SCHWERT!"

The brunette flinched at the tone of his voice, but that was enough to kick the boy back into gear. He nodded firmly and turned back to help Cobalt, who was being carried into the nearest car by Raimi and Say'ri. He jumped into the driver's side, followed by Raimi in the passenger seat and the three Chon'sin students in the backseat.

Basilio felt his shoulders sag in relief when he saw the car pull away," Thank gods their out of the picture. Now we can attack-" Before he could finish, one of the cop cars next to them exploded, sending debris and fire everywhere. Those who had seen it ahead of time were given time to duck, but it knocked out most of the policemen. Walhart grinned sickly and pulled out what looked like another handmade bomb. Basilio was the first to find it, and he quickly decided that he had had enough violence in one day," Fall back! Everyone, fall-" He was interrupted when he hear yet another deafening shot. He felt the bullet soar through his chest, causing him to automatically cough up blood," I d-don't... I don't stand a chance...," He grumbled to himself. The solution to the situation was clear for him, but it didn't have a clear ending at the same time. He cringed," Flavia! Everyone! Run! Run for your lives!"

Flavia shook her head, ignoring the fact that the man that had just gone on a killing spree was getting away. She fell to her knees by his side and tried to help him into a seating position," I'm not leaving you here!"

"There's...only one car...left, you...need to take...the others to the...hospital. They're...injured..."

"And you're dying!"

He coughed up more blood, wheezing with his last breaths," T-Tell...Lon'qu and Olivia...that I-I...a-always loved them...as if...they...were...my...own..."

Flavia cursed under her breath, hating that this was the only option," Tell them yourself, you one-eyed clod of a man! I'm not going anywhere and neither are you!"

Basilio shook his head, his breathing becoming even heavier," Fool woman! I'm f-finished... Don't let it...be for nothing... For once in your life...just do what I say...," It was just like with Lon'qu earlier. It pained him so much to try and send him partner away," They...need you...more than me...," He tried to explain. When she didn't budge, he used the last of his energy to boom," Go! Go, gods damn you! GOOOOOO!"

He couldn't see clearly, but he was fairly certain that two of the policemen had to drag Flavia away as they tried to explain that they had already called the paramedics. The last noticeable thing he heard was Flavia's pained scream," BASILIO!"

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"We need to get him to the hospital!"

"Oh my gods, is he going to be okay?"

"He...He might if we get him there in time."

"But didn't he die? Isn't this changing the future?"

Basilio furrowed his eyebrow, and with what little strength he had, he managed to open his eyes. What he didn't expect to see was two teenagers, not much younger than Olivia and Lon'qu carrying him from the spot he was positive he was going to die in. Confusion filled him, but exhaustion overtook him and he passed out again, only catching the last part of the kids' conversation.

"It might be, but if it makes my parents happy, it'll be worth it."

* * *

**So...we had some violence...and by some, I mean a lot. So, a week has passed since they were arrested, and they are a bit on edge. Got some Say'rixTiki bonding time. Tanith got kidnapped by Walhart, but I'll talk more about that later because that is the later bulk of the chapter. Gerome and Brady decided to go after Levy and Inigo, and met Nah along the way! I don't know if you picked up on it as soon as I mentioned it, but there is something eerily familiar about the five figures in the two stories. Hmmm? HMMM? Chrom and Lissa finally faced their father (FINALLY), which I've been waiting to do since the freaking funeral scene. Plus, everyone's got Morgan's back! I like writing the brotherxsister relationship, because it's got a lot of layers and obstacles that they'll have to overcome. Now on the the exciting part; If you didn't pick up on it, Cobalt is crushing pretty hard on Tanith, so he shot Walhart, unknowingly getting shot himself. If that's not bad enough, they had to leave Basilio behind. Who do you think was talking at the end? Who rescued him? You'll find out soon! Review time!  
**

**Amy47101:**** Haha, Gaius isn't going to survive much longer without his candy! I know, he's the creepiest guy in the game! He's super manipulative, and I just had to put him in the story! I agree, he kind of stalks everyone in the Shepherds. Okay, I have this super weird tradition where I have Morgan and Lucina (even if they aren't siblings) kill Excellus. So...who knows what will happen in this version. Yeah, Hewitt pretty much hates his dad, but he and Aversa are going to have a very interesting relationship. Spoilers! I feel like Priam is a jocky slightly older version of Chrom, but entirely different at the same time. Inigo and Levy are definitely going to make an appearance in the next chapter...and spoilers. **

**MusiKuro:**** That's understandable. Trusting a fanfiction is a hard thing to do if it has a weird plot, but I'm super glad you like this one! I wish I could center it more around band, but I'm at a point in the story where I can't really turn back. Oh well! There's still State Championships in the distance. Ahhh, thank you so much! I'm so happy you like my take on Chrobin and I'm super happy that you like my OCs! I adore long reviews, so you don't need to apologize for it! Thank you for reviewing! **

**Snowy:**** Sometimes I post on Sundays, so that might be why you missed it. I try really hard to post on Saturdays, but sometimes conflict is unavoidable. Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the story! That's adorable! "Best friends don't go to prison alone" is the theme of this story arc, because of the Grimleal band members and the three cousins in this chapter. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Hylianshepherd: ****There are so many plot twists in this story arc, it's almost unbelievable. I'm not sure how many were in this chapter, but there were a bunch of _Aha_ and _Oh no_ moments! Crazy grandpa finally got dialogue in this chapter! He is incredibly bipolar, as you can tell. I'm just glad he didn't put the pieces together with the future children, because that would have meant that his son married a grimleal member, lol. Thank you for reviewing! **

**supersoldiers3:**** Yay, I'm unpredictable! That's a good skill to have in writing, because personally, I really like it when there is a huge plot twist that I don't know about. I can't confirm anything yet, but Robin and Anna could become more than friends in the future! Spoilers! What I'm excited for is Anna's offspring? Who will they be? What gender will they be? Ugh, I'm just too excited! Aww, thank you! So...Henry's story is back. What do you think that's going to mean? Does it possibly mean that it wasn't just a story he made up? Thank you for reviewing!  
**

**Golden-Lightning:**** It's cool, I always answer reviews right before I post the next chapter, so I usually get around to answering them in accordance to the right chapter. Uprisingfatbear! Yay, it's so cute in a weird way! I know, this arc is revealing so much backstory and explaining so many unanswered questions! The only clue that I gave away to Hewitt and Robin being related was the fact that a long long long time ago, I was explaining what I said my OCs looked like, and I said that Hewitt was the black haired Robin in Smash Bros. Honestly, though, I feel I'm the only one that would remember that. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Alright, really quickly: Remember that Dimitri is having a child? What gender do you want them to be? Honestly, I am completely torn between having them be either a girl or a boy, so I'm going to ask you guys! Thank you in advance! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you guys next week! Happy Halloween!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	37. Chapter 37 Endless Night

**Hey guys! This chapter is going to be what I'm going to call dark fluff, because it's definitely not lambcuddles, but it's also sweeter than most of the stuff that has happened lately. This chapter is probably longer than a few of the past ones (I can't really tell right now, but it took a while to write), and it focuses on the three Grimleal. I won't say anything else, so you'll have to read ahead to see what happens! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

The last thing the three expected to see at 11:00 at night was a somewhat disgruntled Sumia. She had burst into the jail, rushing to their cell as soon as she laid eyes on it," Gaius? Robin? Are you two in here?"

The two immediately rushed to greet her on the other side of the bars," Sumia? How did you get in here? You could get in trouble if you're caught-"

"I don't care," Sumia straightened up and explained herself," I'm worried that my parents will come any day and drag me out of this town, and I can't let that happen until I tell...Gaius?" The redhead blinked in shock and moved closer to her," I...I need to be honest with you."

Robin knew what was happening, and she wasn't sure whether or not she wanted to stop it. She didn't have any reason not to trust Gaius any more, and Cordelia was right when she said Sumia knew what she was getting herself into. She turned to Hewitt, who beckoned his little sister over to him so that the two would have some form of privacy. Robin bit her lip hesitantly, going over everything she had ever believed in her head before patting Gaius on the shoulder. After almost two months of being hated by her, he had finally gained her full approval.

Gaius's attention was pulled back to Sumia when he felt her take one of his hands through the bars," I'm not sure if this is something you want to hear or not, but I can't go on in life without telling you this," She took a deep breath before continuing on," I was convinced my entire life that love was something that hit you the moment you laid eyes on someone. I mistook attraction to someone for having strong feelings for them. It's funny; the moment I realized I was in love was the moment you broke my heart."

"Sumia..."

"Please let me finish," She pleaded softly," Look, I know that our relationship would be tricky, what with you being a Grimleal member and all, but I'm not scared. In fact, the only thing I'm scared of is never seeing you again," Sumia let her eyes fall onto the ground," I'm sorry if that was something you didn't want to hear, but I had to say it."

She seemed to have convinced herself that he wouldn't return her feelings, because as soon as she was done, she started to pull away. Gaius tightened his grip on her hand to keep her from doing so, receiving a surprised look from the brunette," I convinced myself that I didn't want anything to do with you in the beginning of the year. It's funny, because I actually found you somewhat annoying," He chuckled," What I didn't realize was that this entire time I was falling in love with you too. Like you said, I didn't realize that I had fallen in love until I watched the girl I adored slip away from my fingers," His smile faded away, replaced by a more somber expression," Everything went downhill after you left. I think we both know how bad it got."

"I remember," She mumbled, squeezing his hand lightly," How could I ever forget?"

Gaius gently took her other hand in his, pressing a soft kiss on the back of it before continuing," You're the angel that saved me, Sumia. You forgave me when I couldn't forgive myself. If I thought I liked you before, I knew that I was in love with you after that night," He sighed," If I do end up going to jail or worse, I want you to know that I...I love you, Sumia. I always will."

The brunette let out a small, blissful laugh," I love you too, Gaius," She slid her hands through the bars so that they were somewhat around his neck, to which he responded by cupping her face in his hands. The two stared into each other's eyes, both leaning in to be as close to each other as possible," I always will."

Before they could kiss, the loud slam of a faraway door caught the group's attention. Gaius swore under his breath and pushed Sumia away towards the exit," You have to get out of here."

"What if-"

"Sumia, get out before you get caught!"

The girl started towards the door but stopped in her tracks. Without warning, she spun in her heel, grabbed Gaius by the collar, and pulled him into a short, but adoring kiss. He could feel his willpower float away from him, and if he didn't get a hold of it soon, the girl he loved would get caught. He pushed her away again, this time more gently, and kissed her hand gently as a farewell," Please go."

She nodded and disappeared through whichever way she entered, leaving just in time to avoid Flavia. The police chief burst into their jail cell, effectively jolting all of its occupants to their feet," Get up and get out," She ordered strictly. The grimleal students exchanged bewildered looks, only getting to their feet when they realized that she was serious," Listen up; Walhart is a deranged criminal and is now on the run, so you have to leave here. You can go anywhere, as long as it is not at your own house and not with each other."

Robin frowned uneasily," What's going on, Flavia?"

The woman cringed at the memory, seemingly unwilling to reveal what happened yet. Hewitt seemed to understand this and changed the subject back to what she had started with," Where do you suggest we go?"

"I know a place," The white haired girl answered softly," It should be completely empty at the moment."

"There's one down, now two of us need to find a place. Bubbles, you could go to your boyfriend's house while Zipped-Lips goes to this place you're talking about," Gaius suggested," I'll have to call Henry and give him a heads up, just in case Walhart knows we're roommates."

The drum major shook her head," I can't go to Chrom's house; he'd expect me to be there," As soon as she heard the words come out of her mouth, her body filled with panic," Oh gods, I have to warn Chrom! There's a whole house of people that Walhart could try and use as bait! I have to call Sumia as well, and-" She rubbed her temples in frustration," Where am I going to find a place that could hold all of them that Walhart won't look in?"

Hewitt placed a comforting hand on his sister's shoulder," Take them to the place you were referring to earlier. I can find somewhere else to go."

"No, you could get-"

"You forget that I was raised as a Grimleal member," He reassured," I'll find somewhere to go."

Flavia spoke up before she could protest," What about you, Gaius? Do you have any plans of where you and Henry could go?"

"I know a guy," The redhead replied," I know it's a long shot, but I think we could look after Sumia and Cynthia as well," When he received a tired look from Robin, he elaborated," Chrom's family is huge, Bubbles. You can't keep all of them together."

She bit her lip hesitantly, but gave him a shaky thumbs up. With everything settled, Flavia ushered the three out of the jail and into the night," Make sure you're not seen. Don't call anyone until you reach your destination; have them come to you," She explained as she handed out their belongings," May the gods be with you."

She was gone just as soon as she was there, leaving the trio outside to follow through with their plans. Before the boys could leave, though, Robin yanked them back and into the tightest hug she could produce," Please make sure to stay safe."

With that, the sixteen year old scampered off to wherever she was planning on staying safe. Hewitt was about to follow stance when Gaius stopped him," I'm gonna tell her."

The words hit the dark haired boy hard. Did Gaius know about Robin? Did he put the pieces together? He was under the impression that he had gotten his mark from thieving, but he had also grown up in a Grimleal household. Hewitt swallowed thickly," Tell who?"

"I need to tell Sumia I want to b per with her," While the weight that had just been lifted off of his shoulders was tremendously relieving, his sudden statement baffled him. Gaius seemed to pick up on his confusion and elaborated," We're on the very top a deranged criminal's hit list. The fact that I never told her how I felt weighed pretty heavily on me all week, mainly because I figured I would never see her again. I was damn lucky to be able to tell her tonight."

Despite how touching seeing this side of Gaius was, his explanation didn't clear anything up for him," Why are you telling me this?"

"You have a girl too, don't you?" The ginger laughed at the bright shade of red that dusted his friend's cheeks," This girl must be something if she got someone as reclusive as you to like her."

"She is."

"Then you should tell her," He shrugged and discarded the lollipop stick he had kept all week onto the ground," It might be the last time you'll be able to," Gaius patted his shoulder," Stay alive, okay? I don't want to wake up tomorrow and find either you or Bubbles dead."

Hewitt nodded," Same goes for you," The two exchanged one last look before dispersing in different directions, leaving the prison that had held them behind once and for all.

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Levy felt her world crash down around her when she saw her godfather in the hospital bed. She froze right in her tracks when she glanced through the window, her eyes trained on her dad's still body. Inigo, who hadn't noticed his companion's reaction, continued to walk a few feet before the realization," Levy? What's wrong?"

For a few seconds, she didn't even breath. He peeked through where she was looking and felt his stomach drop. He reached out to touch her shoulder, but she shrugged it off and forced her way into the room. Levy's eyes flickered from Cobalt's unconscious for to Tanith, who was sleeping in the chair next to him, millions of questions streaming through her. This didn't happen in her future. This wasn't supposed to happen. Was he going to die?

She barely noticed Inigo slowly make his way into the room, looking from her godparents to herself," Levy, we can't-"

"My dad is hurt! Heck, he could be dying!" She blurted, finally breaking from her silent state," I can't stand by and wait to hear what happens," Her eyes were desperately pleading with him as she begged," I have to know he'll be okay."

As much as he wanted to bring her from the room, he couldn't bring himself to do so. He knew she was fully aware that her godparents weren't dating yet, but seeing one of them like this was the worst thing that could happen to her. He managed a small nod and squeezed her shoulder," Do you want me to stay with you?"

She gently shook her head," I can't pull you into this. I mean, it's only a matter of time before your parents come to check on Basilio," Levy smiled softly," Don't worry, I'll be okay."

Inigo knew she had a point, but it felt wrong to leave her behind. Maybe it was because she was the only one he hadn't abandoned, and he was starting to get sick of running and hiding. After leaving Owain with his parents, sneaking away from Brady and Gerome, and disappearing from Lucina...the guilt was starting to get to him," Are you sure?" She nodded confidently, unknowingly making his stomach drop," I'll come check in on you in a few days, okay? I'm not going to abandon you."

The brunette turned to leave, but before he could, Levy jumped onto her feet, kissed him on the cheek, and wrapped him into a tight hug," Thank you for letting me come with you, Lover Boy."

He chuckled and messed up her hair affectionately," I wouldn't have been able to do any of this without you. Thank you for helping me save Basilio," Now that they had exchanged their goodbyes, there was nothing left to do but leave. He kissed her cheek as well for good measure before finally exiting the hospital room. He briefly peeked into Basilio's room to make sure he was okay, making sure to leave almost immediately after. He couldn't hang around longer than he was supposed to, or people would start to question who he was.

Inigo was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that hardly noticed that someone was walking in the opposite direction he was. The two people collided, sending the smaller one onto the ground and Inigo stumbling backwards. He rubbed his forehead and hissed in pain," Excuse me, but you should watch where-" The words died in his mouth as soon as he saw a flash on blue hair on the ground," Lucina? Is that really you?"

The girl's head whipped up so fast that he hardly processed it move," Inigo?!"

Bliss filled his being, causing his cheerful smile to grace his lips again," I can't believe it's you! I'm so glad that-" He was cut off by Lucina jumping to her feet and slamming her fist into his cheek, sending him sprawling onto the ground. He held his hand up to his cheek and sent her a bewildered look," What was that for?!"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that you disappeared off the face of the earth without giving me so much as a hint of where you may have gone off to. It could also be the fact that when I needed your help, you weren't there for me," Her ears turned bright pink, and Inigo couldn't help but think that she looked cute when she was angry," No, now I know! It's because I trusted you to stay with me, and you broke that trust! What if you had died, Inigo? What would I do then?" His enamored look shifted into one of shock, causing her to shake her head in frustration," You know what? Forget it."

Inigo pulled himself onto his feet and stumbled after her retreating figure," Lucina! Wait! Hold up one second," Apparently the desperation was evident in his voice, because she slowed to a stop and glowered at him,"...Aw, what? No smile for good old Inigo?"

Lucina's glare intensified," I beg your pardon?"

"Tsk tsk tsk. Such a grim countenance...," Honestly, he knew what he was doing was stupid. He had bothered her about smiling during their time in the YLH, but things didn't have as much of an impact back then. Something about her aura told him that she was stressing out more than usual, and the only way he knew to fix it was to joke around with her," Looks like someone forgot her daily smiling practice!"

The girl felt her blood boil at the teasing. She had hoped that he had forgotten about the idiotic pastime he had of trying to make her smile more, but it seemed that it wasn't going to go away any time soon," Now is hardly the time!"

Inigo tutted," Now is PRECISELY the time! I don't know why you're so unhappy, but there needs to be a certain amount of positivity in dark times like this. You just have to keep grinning until you feel happy."

"Oh, now I understand," She snapped," I should smile while my mother is sitting in jail, waiting to hear her sentence. I should grin at the fact that Walhart has the upper hand all the time! According to you, I should be tickled pink at the fact that Morgan...," She took a deep breath, trying to prevent herself from becoming hysterical," There are times when a person has no business smiling, Inigo."

The brunette didn't seem to understand just how close to breaking down she was," Gods, but you ARE grave...," A twisted smirk made its way to his face," All right, then. It looks like drastic measures are in order."

"Wh-what are you...," She didn't have time to run before the boy wrapped his arms around her stomach," Get your hands away from-" Without warning, he started tickling her mercilessly," S-stop that! Stop...AH HA HA! I-Inig... AH HA HA HA! Stop! Stop! Stop that this instant! Stop before I cut off your hands!"

Inigo finally pulled away, looking somewhat smug and definitely happy with his actions," Well? Feel any happier?"

After regaining her air back, she huffed," I feel annoyed! I told you, I'm not in the mood for you to annoy me. Now leave me alone."

"Hm, so tickling is off limits, then? Perhaps it's time for a little..."

"NO! Do not attempt anything! Do not even speak! JUST! BE! QUIET!"

He shrank back slightly," But-"

"ENOUGH, Inigo! What must I do to convince you to stop bothering me? Unlike you, my head is not filled with rainbows and sunshine. My mother is in jail, which didn't happen in our timeline! My father is seclusion get himself more and more from us! And Morgan...," She tightened her fists," He's back. I don't know how he is or if he really is my brother or not, but there's a living, breathing Morgan that sleeps one room away from me," She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to coax any tears that might try to escape in," I have no desire to smile right now, and even less to fake one! If you're too dense to understand that, I don't know how to help you-" This time, he was the one to cut her off by pulling her into a heartwarming hug," What are you-"

"I understand now," He whispered soothingly," While I do love seeing your beautiful smile, I know that there are also times where crying helps more."

For a few moments, she could only stand frozen in place. When the weight of his actions finally sank in to her, she embraced it by wrapping her arms tightly around his weight and burying her face into his chest. She had forgotten how nice his hugs were," I'm sorry."

She felt his chest vibrate against her cheeks as he chuckled," Sorry for what? As I said earlier, I know why you're annoyed now. It's good that you took it out on me and not someone else."

"Why?"

"Because I love being with you," He replied honestly," We've grown rather close over the years, and I've seen you at both your best and your worst. It's better that you tell me everything because you know I won't judge you for it," Inigo sighed and pulled her even closer," I'm sorry I left you to deal with all of this alone."

She shrugged, but didn't pull away," What should I do?

Before he could answer, another voice rang through the air," Lucina!" The girl turned around just in time to be pulled into her mother's arms," What are you doing out here so late? It's dangerous out here with Walhart on the loose!"

"Mother?" The blue haired's girl's face broke into a huge grin as she eagerly returned Robin's embrace," The released you!"

Inigo felt his stomach drop and referred back to what she had mentioned earlier," Hold on, did you say that Walhart got away?"

"Unfortunately so," Robin replied bitterly," That's why we need to find a safe place as soon as possible. I was thinking that we could go to Frederick's old house for the night. Can I borrow your phone? I'd like to call your father and give him a heads up."

Lucina nodded and handed her the phone to her mother, quickly turning back to Inigo after she had started dialing," Are you going to come with us?"

The brunette looked from Lucina to the hospital, mentally debating what would be the better option. If he went with her, he would obviously be safer. But if he hid, what would happen to Levy? Her and her family were completely defenseless in there," Levy is in the hospital to support her parents. I should stay with her just in case Walhart attacks there."

She smiled bittersweetly and turned to follow her mother. Just as she was about to leave, she spun around and faced him dead on," Can you promise me something?"

"Anything for you, Lucina."

The blue haired girl tried to keep the blush from spreading across her cheeks and continued," Promise that you won't leave again. We need you here with us," Her eyes fell to the ground," I need you."

"Hey," He moved forward and cupped the side of her face with his surprisingly soft hand," Don't pretend that I don't need you as much as you need me."

Robin's head snapped up towards the pair when she heard the words leave Inigo's mouth. That was almost exactly what she said to Chrom the day in the graveyard, and she was head over heels in love with him at that point. Did that mean...did this boy love her daughter? She watched him kiss Lucina's forehead before retreating back into the hospital, confirming her suspicions," Hey, Lucina?"

Her daughter squeaked in embarrassment when she realized that her mother had been listening to their conversation," M-Mother?!"

"Do you like him?"

Her face burned even brighter red," What?! How could you even suggest such a...," Lucina sighed, unable to finish her protest," Honestly, I don't really know what love feels like."

Robin nodded in understanding," Alright. Just know that I'm here to talk to whenever you need it," She took her daughter's hand in hers and squeezed it gently," Come on, we have to get to the safe house before Walhart finds us."

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How was he going to tell Olivia that he had left Basilio behind? How was he supposed to say that if it hadn't been for the fact that some kids had brought him into the hospital, he'd be dead? Most of all, how could he tell Olivia that despite being hospitalized, he was most likely going to die anyways?

Lon'qu stared at his apartment door, debating how on earth he would tell her. She'd break apart, but if she would hear him out, that would be enough. With that backing him up, he finally summoned the courage he needed and entered the apartment. Olivia, who had a habit of staying awake until her new roommate arrived home, jumped to her feet," Are you okay? You've never been gone this long-"

"Basilio is...," The words didn't come out of his mouth, but lingered in the air. He couldn't say it. He had built up his walls so much over the years that he couldn't bear to acknowledge the possibility that he was gone. He growled in frustration and stormed to the other side of the room, using all of his strength the punch a dent into the wall.

Olivia yelped and rushed to his side, wrapping both of her arms around his one to keep himself from getting hurt," Lon'qu!"

"He's...Basilio, he's..."

A singular tear dripped on his arm," I know, Lon'qu."

The brunette flipped around, surprised to find her face drenched with tears. He hadn't thought of the possibility that someone would call her to tell her what happened. Seeing her in such pain caused tears to start flowing from his eyes as well," If I could trade his life for mine, he'd be the one standing here and-"

"Don't you dare say that!" She commanded, trying to keep her composure together long enough to get her point across," Your life isn't something that you're going to barter. If I lost both Basilio and you..." More tears slipped down her face, and he tried to wipe off the trails they left behind," I couldn't. If I lost both of you, I'd lose myself."

Lon'qu eased her onto the ground and wrapped his arm tightly around her," I'm so sorry I couldn't protect him, Olivia."

The pink haired girl shook her head furiously and faced him firmly," You cannot apologize to me if he dies. It's just as much of my fault as it is yours-"

"How on earth would it-"

"I don't know, but I'd take the blame over letting you do it again," She frowned," Basilio told me about what happened to Ke'ri. I saw how badly it affected you, even this many years after it happened. You can't take any more guilt than you already have."

Lon'qu stared at her, wondering where this outspoken girl had come from," I...," He gently took her hand and tightened his grip," I can't let you take all the guilt, but I know that you won't let me take it all either. We're just going to have to share it, won't we?"

She nodded and leaned her head onto his shoulder," It's just going to be us now, isn't it?" When he didn't answer, she curled up against him and sighed," You know that voice in the back of your head that tells you that he won't die? It doesn't let you accept it. This is all...unfathomable."

Neither spoke after that. Like Olivia said, it couldn't sink it for either of them. They stayed in the position they were sitting in until sleep overtook the two of them.

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Anna was starting to lose sleep now that Hewitt and Robin were gone. She hadn't realized how much better her life was with them in it until they were gone. Without them in her life, her only close friend was Tiki. Her parents took this as an excuse to try and work her more, the redhead was starting to develop a habit of watching the news as much as possible.

It was around one in the morning when she decided that sleep wasn't going to come to her, so she stumbled downstairs into their living room with her warmest blanket and a cup of tea to watch reruns of older shows. She would have turned on the news, but she figured there wouldn't be any major happenings this late into the evening.

Before she could get fully engaged into the story, a knock sounded at the door. Anna stared at it in bewilderment, wondering if she had imagined things. Just as she was going to turn back to the TV, the person knocked again. She carefully put her cup down and picked up a vase, cautiously making her way to the door. She mentally prepared herself to take down the intruder before swinging the door open and prepping to slam the person in the head with her makeshift weapon. Before it could make impact, the figure caught it midswing and pulled it from her hands, simply uttering," Good."

Anna blinked a few times, fully convinced that she was dreaming now," Hewitt? Is that really you?" She didn't wait for him to answer, instead opting to fling herself onto him," Oh my gods, I've missed you so much! Did they finally release you guys because they didn't find evidence to crimes? I knew they wouldn't-"

"They released us because Walhart is going to try and murder us," He stated, effectively shocking Anna out of her rambling. Once he was sure he had her full attention, Hewitt continued awkwardly," Gaius said I should tell you I love you, so...here I am."

"Walhart is-hold on, did you just say you loved me?" The redhead stared at him in shock for a full minute before punching him in the arm," That's not how you're supposed to confess! You have to be more romantic! At least pretend to be genuine," As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she regretted it. What if he thought that was a rejection? No. She had to be firm if she was going to stay true to herself,"...Well?"

He snorted," Okay, fine," Anna hardly had time to react when he cupped her face with his hands and kissed her with all of the passion and warmth that he could never convey through words. The redhead went weak in the knees, only staying upright due to the fact that her arms were wrapped around his neck. It was over almost as soon as it had started, leaving both parties equally flustered," I'll come back as soon as I know it's safe."

"K-Kay...," The dark haired boy pressed a quick kiss onto her temple before gently closing the door behind him and disappearing into the night again. Anna stared at the door for what seemed like ten minutes, trying to figure out if that was a sleep deprived illusion or not. Her face was burning bright red and her lips were tingling, but it all seemed too good to be true.

"How long are you going to stand there?" Anna let out a terrified yelp, clutching her heart and glaring at Annika, who had seemingly seen the entire endeavor," He's pretty hot. Mysterious too."

"Shut up!"

Her sister giggled in amusement," No wonder you've been so distracted lately! Just wait until I tell Annie and Annette that you've got a little boyfriend!"

Annika turned to run up the stairs, quickly followed by Anna wielding a pillow as a weapon," Don't you dare!" Despite her threat, Anna couldn't keep the corners of her lips from turning into a huge smile. It wasn't a dream after all.

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The moment Chrom saw his girlfriend sitting in Frederick's old living room, he rushed to her side and forced her into the tightest hug he could produce. All of his worries of never seeing her again faded away, replaced by an immense feeling of relief. It was only a matter of time before Morgan wrapped his arms around both of his parents, and even Lucina couldn't help but join in," Okay guys," Robin wheezed," I haven't been gone that long...and I can't...breath."

The three jumped off of her so quickly it seemed like they had been burned, blubbering apologies that only caused her to giggle blissfully. She didn't realize how much she had missed them up until this point. Lissa rushed forwards next, pulling her into a hug that rivaled the one she received on the first day of school," I was so worried about you!"

"It's good to see you again, Lissa-"

"Nuh-uh," Much to Robin's surprise, the blonde reached and pulled one of her bracelets off and firmly clasping it around her wrist," I've been thinking about it, and I realized that we're pretty much sisters now. Not that this is a some peer pressure thing to keep you married to Chrom, it's just that...if I can't have Emm, you're the one I'd want to wear it."

Robin felt her eyes water, and she immediately responded by clasping off her own bracelet and putting around Lissa's wrist," I wouldn't want anyone else to be my sister."

"Speaking of siblings," Chrom interrupted," Did you know that Hewitt was your brother?"

"Yeah, I figured out quite a few things during my stay," She murmured uncomfortably," I'd best tell you about it later. Where's Frederick, Tharja, and Orie?"

"They're staying with Miriel," Noire responded softly," As much as they wanted to be here to help, they didn't want to endanger their baby."

The white haired girl nodded thankfully," Good, I wouldn't want them risking her life for me. In fact, I wouldn't want any of you to die in place."

Sensing the odd change of subject, Chrom took charge," It's getting pretty late. We should head off to bed," He turned to the kids and started assigning them rooms," Girls get the bedroom, boys get the living room."

"Who gets Frederick's old room?" Lissa smirked playfully," Oh, are you going to get some private cuddly time with Robin?"

His face burned the same color as Sully's hair in response," That's none of your business, Lissa," The children giggled at that, but seeing how late it really was, they started to trudge off into their respective places. Once they made sure that everyone was bundled up and tucked in, the couple retreated into Frederick's room and collapsed on the bed. Chrom glanced over at his girlfriend and lightly kissed her temple," Gods, I don't want to go through something like that ever again."

"That makes two of us, then," She sighed, curling up into his arms," Chrom, I really am a member of the Grimleal. Validar is my father, and I'm fairly certain that he has more influence in the cult than we originally thought. It might be best if I...disappear for a while."

"That's out of the question."

Robin rolled her eyes," I can't keep putting you guys in danger. I can't be the only one that's noticed that everything bad has happened since I came here. I don't want anyone else to die because of me."

The blue haired boy tried to come up with a proper argument, but the words didn't come out of his mouth. After what seemed like an eternity of mental debate, he settled with holding her even tighter and whispering," Let's hope it never comes to that."

* * *

**It's finally happened! Sumia and Gaius are FINALLY a freaking couple! All that's left is Tanith and Cobalt and, of course, Lon'qu and Olivia. That's not counting the children, of course. None of them are in a couple...yet. Okay, so Sumia and Gaius was super hard to write, because they are one of the couples that have a huge influence on this story. I wanted their interaction with each other to be super special. I almost put that at the end of the chapter with Sumia being forced to go live with her parents, but I went with my gut and wrote it the way I originally imagined it. Levy's godparents are Tanith and Cobalt, so it probably stressed her out to see her dad with a bullet hole in him. That leaves the question; who are her real parents? Inigo and Lucina FINALLY found each other again! Thank god, it's been too long for them! See if you noticed the reference to chapter 15! The inspiration for Lon'qu and Olivia's moment actually came from my one-shot with Henry and Olivia. I'm not sure if I put it in there or not (I don't think I did), but both of them must have grieved pretty heavily after the loss of Basilio. Hewitt also confessed to Anna, and do you know what that means? Their child can finally come in! It also looks like Dimitri's child will be a boy, which is good because that's what I was leaning towards! The only problem with that is that the boy OCs are going to heavily outweigh the girls in this story. Oh well. Lissa and Robin had a cute moment, as well as Robin and Chrom. That's about it for this chapter, but there's still one blaring problem; Walhart is still on the loose. When we he show up? Will he show up? No one knows! Review time!**

**potatoman098:** **That basically sums up this entire arc; angst. The poor prison subjects are finally free, but at what price? Will they have to stay in hiding? Their dad has somewhat...lost his mind...in a way. I mean, he is definitely bipolar. At least he didn't lash out physically on them. Henry's story is going to be an even greater part of this story. Hehehe. Nah's relationship with Brady is my favorite, and I'm going to go back more to that later in the story. I think that it makes it even sadder that Levy had to see her parents in such a bad state. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Kit-Cat Star:** **Basilio is a huge sweetheart, despite some of the way he phrases things, haha. You were right! I figured that Inigo knew that Basilio had such a huge influence on his parents' lives, and he couldn't sit by and let the man die. I'm excited for the moment Inigo finally gets to meet his parents! The next chapter will definitely have more children come in now that most of the couples are together. ****Thank you for reviewing!**

**Tairulz:** **Thank you! I'm glad you like it! I agree, I wish I could put a little more fluff in, but now that the arc is starting to settle down more, there'll be an opportunity for it. I love writing the future children, and since I'm planning to put them in more in the next chapter, I'll try and have something semi-fluffy there. Thank you for your review!**

**SnowyDawn17:**** Oh cool, thanks for telling me! Haha, I usually manually check stories (I don't read many, though. It takes enough time writing this one). Crazy bipolar grandpa is unintentionally going to help Robin by telling them what happened to their mother, lol. Things are so close to settling themselves out, but there are some questions that are still left to be answered! I agree, I like Dimitri having a son too. Thanks for the review! **

**Amy47101:**** He kept his lollipop stick until he left the cell, haha! I think that it represents his desperation, and now he doesn't need it because he's free! Sumia and Gaius FINALLY got together, yay! It's been too long of a wait for everyone, including myself! I'm going to have something similar to what you said happen, but it'll be much later in the story and...spoilers. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Rainbowpanda5000:**** Thank you so much! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far! Thank you for reviewing! **

**MissShane12:**** They caught him in his true colors, all that's left is to arrest him! Thank you, I'm glad you liked the chapter! Basilio's not dead quite yet, but he's in a really bad state. This version of Chrom and Lissa's father is super interesting to write, because he has been isolated with only his anger so long that it's driven him insane. Thank you for reviewing! **

**So, if you haven't read it already, Dimitri's child is going to be a boy! I'm not sure if he'll be in the next chapter or a further chapter, but I will say that he is the third oldest future child (Lucina is brimming forth by a month or so). The only future children we have left to meet (as of now) are Kjelle, Laurent, Yarne, Anna's child, and Dimitri's child (Sorry if I'm forgetting one). I will probably not add any more kids now, but I can't predict the future. Another kid may or may not pop up eventually. Thank you for reading, and I'll see you guys next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	38. Chapter 38 Children of the Past

**Hey guys! It's another Sunday post because while I did (surprisingly) finish the chapter yesterday, I had no time to post it because I was so busy yesterday afternoon. Let's talk about this chapter! So, I took another approach and decided to focus on some of the supporting characters, which means that the main characters are not in this chapter. It also means that there are going to be some future children in this chapter! See if you can guess which ones they are! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

When Monday rolled around and none of their leaders were present with less than a week until State championships, the band nearly went into a frenzy. It was bad enough that Robin and the other two had been arrested, but now Chrom, Frederick, Sumia, Lissa, and even Henry were missing! Even their children didn't show up to school that day. Say'ri, who would've been their back up due to her experience drum majoring her previous band, was gone as well. To make things even worse, neither Lon'qu or Olivia were present either.

That left Sully, Virion, Stahl, Cordelia, Kellam, Vaike, Nowi, Panne, and Libra as the only seniors. After much debate (mostly coming from Virion and Vaike), the band had elected Sully and Cordelia as their leaders until the gaggle of students missing returned. The two agreed that they wouldn't be able to march in the field because of the amount of spots missing in the drill, so they sent off the teenagers to sectionals to try and perfect their music.

Cordelia sat on the podium and anxiously drummed her fingers against her knees, trying not to worry too much about where her friends had disappeared to. By this point, everyone in the school had been warned not to associate with their former principal without an explanation. The rumor was that he had murdered someone over the weekend, but the teachers shot that down suspiciously fast.

"I'm sure that they're fine," The redhead turned to Stahl, who settled himself down next to her," We all know that they can take care of themselves."

"Aren't you supposed to be in sectionals?"

"I figured that you'd need me more than my section would," He replied simply," Wanna tell me what's on your mind? It might make you feel better."

Would it? It was probably better than keeping her insecurities to herself," Honestly, I was just thinking about how much things have changed since Robin came. I mean, think about it; None of us were dating, Chrom usually hung out around his jock friends, Sumia was incredibly insecure, Emmeryn...," Cordelia frowned," She was still alive. It makes me wonder if things have changed for the better or worse."

Stahl clicked his tongue thoughtfully before speaking up," Things have changed for the better for me. Without Robin, you'd still have a crush on Chrom and I'd be too insecure to ask you out. I'm not sure if Severa is also linked to Robin or not, but I'm fairly certain we wouldn't have met her without her presence. I also really like Robin; she's always nice to me."

Cordelia giggled at how simplistic her boyfriend was," Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm just worried that things are going to get a lot worse really soon."

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It was mid-afternoon in Ylisse when a trio of teenagers approached the gates of the high school, hesitating to enter the grounds. Two of them, both tall, somewhat lanky boys, eyed it cautiously while the third, a somewhat short girl with aqua hair that had magenta streaks in it, prepared herself to enter. After analyzing it well enough for her standards, she stepped forward to enter. The tan boy nearly tripped over his own feet as he grabbed her shoulders," Are you sure we're not coming too early?"

"Too early? If anything we're late," She answered with a tidbit of annoyance clear in her voice," Don't tell me you're scared of school too, Yarne."

The boy, Yarne, stiffened," I'm not scared of a building! I'm scared of the people inside the building," He tugged on his long, dark hair," Mom always warned me about racists and extremists-"

"That's illogical," The tallest, auburn haired boy reported," The youngest percentage of Ylissians are only modestly less likely than their elders to verbalize that colored Ylissians are indolent or unintelligent, but they are also less likely to perceive discrimination against colored Ylissians and considerably less likely to convey that they have felt admiration for others."

The other two blinked, trying to process the information that their friend had just told them," Explain in English this time, Laurent."

"Was my elucidation too intricate for your banal minds to comprehend?" He tutted," Very well, I will undertake an alternative clarification. It is delineated that 23 percent of-"

The girl cut him off by rolling her eyes and starting her journey to the front doors," This is a waste of time. Let's just find our parents and warn them about Walhart."

"W-What if he sees us, Kjelle?" Yarne whimpered," Isn't he the principal?"

"He won't stop us," She assured," After all, we're just like every other kid here at Ylisse High. It's not like someone is going to pick us out...," Kjelle furrowed her eyebrows when she noticed the troubled expressions of her companions," What? What are you looking at?"

"I believe that you have come across someone who is able to, how did you phrase it? Oh yes; "pick you out"," Kjelle gulped and turned around, only to find a boy with the exact same hair color that she used to have," Let me warn you; if you are a member of the Grimleal, I'm not going to let you take a step on campus," The teenager crossed his arms," We've lost enough people to your sort-"

"Don't kill us!" Yarne blurted, jumping up so that he could hide behind Laurent," I'm the last of my tribe and don't deserve to die!"

The other boy rolled his eyes," Cease this nonsense at once, Yarne. You are making a fool of us."

The aqua haired boy rose his eyebrow and quietly murmured," Your tribe...?" The realization hit him a few seconds later," Oh, are you three descendants from our treacherous future? Excuse me for my brashness."

Since Yarne was still skittish and Kjelle seemed to be shell-shocked, Laurent was the one that spoke up," Do not fret, we understand your misconception. My name is Laurent, and these are my comrades, Yarne and Kjelle. We seek council with you and your associates."

"Alas, we have just about finished. The bell should ring any moment," The boy informed," Perhaps if you told me who your parents are, I would be able to assist you."

"P-Panne Scholar-I mean, Taguel."

"Mrs. Miriel Triff, sir."

Kjelle swallowed thickly, now knowing why Yarne was so nervous to enter the building; it meant facing your parents' reaction," My mother is Sully...French."

The boy blinked a few seconds, processing what she had just told him. Once it finally hit him, his jaw dropped," W-W-What?!" He ran his hand through his hair," But that's my last name..."

"I know," She clenched her fists in a vain attempt to calm her nerves," You're my father, Virion French."

Virion stared at her for a full five seconds with his jaw dropped before he was able to compose himself," But if you're my daughter...and Sully is your mother..," A smirk found its easy on his face," That means Sully will be my wife! Haha! Years of romantic endeavors have seemed to finally pay off!" He caught his daughter's eye roll and chuckled," Oh, I forgot to ask for your name!"

"It's Kjelle," She replied, unsure of whether to be happy or befuddled. She was hoping that her father wouldn't be so...theatric in his youth. Kjelle shook the thought away and reminded herself that she was lucky to see him alive," It's good to see you again, father-"

"Hey, where did you guys go?" The four turned around to find a tall, lean boy that looked to be around 17 or 18 years old. As soon as he laid eyes on the future children, he visibly relaxed and approached them cheerfully," I thought that'd I'd lost you guys for good!" His eyes fell on Virion, after after a brief examination, he nodded in approval," Nice hair."

"Where have you been?!" Yarne cried as he flung his arms around the older boy," I thought that you'd been kidnapped or killed or murdered or-"

The brunette laughed awkwardly and patted his friend's head," Sorry. There was this girl that I ran into, and she gave me her number," To prove his point, he held up a crumpled receipt with purple numbers on it," Don't worry, I'll make sure it doesn't happen again."

Virion rose his eyebrow and eyed the phone number in his hand jealously. How was it that it took him years to get so much as a sideways glance from Sully, and this kid can get a phone number without even trying? He huffed," I see...Who exactly are you?"

The boy's eyes lit up with realization and he eagerly held his hand out for him to shake," I'm Novak Mork. My dad is Dimitri, have you heard of him? I know that he's a lot older than you guys, but maybe..."

"I know Ricken and Nah Mork-"

"Uncle Ricken!" Novak's face brightened up," Oh cool! I haven't seen him in ages! He died when I was...," He caught himself and coughed awkwardly," Heh, forget I said anything."

Although he hardly associated with the freshman, hearing about his possible death made Virion's insides churn," That's likely for the best. Our time will be better spent delivering you four to your parents, will it not?" The quartet nodded," Wonderful! Let us be off!"

Luckily for them, most of the students who had attended class that day decided to stick around for at least a few minutes just in case someone would come in and tell them what was going on. By the time Virion and the future children arrived, though, only the main Shepherds had remained. Sully shot to her feet and stormed over to Virion as soon as he entered, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him down to her eye level," Where the hell did you run off to without telling anyone?!"

"Don't fret, my dearest Sully," He assured warmly," I just had to retrieve something from my car. Fortunately, I ran into these children on my journey back in," He motioned to the boys and wrapped his arm Kjelle, pushing her towards her mother," This one is ours!"

"...Our what?"

Virion pursed his lips and gave Kjelle an apologetic look," Our daughter."

The redhead's eyes shifted from her boyfriend to the girl, analyzing her for a few seconds before snapping her fingers and brightening up," Hah! I get it. You're one of the kids who came back with Lucina, yeah? That's great!"

The teenage girl stepped forward, observing the younger version of her mother with curiosity," I can't believe it; you look just as beautiful now as you did when I knew you."

"Har! So I'm not all wrinkled or missing a hand or anything?" Her mother relaxed at the thought, despite not being one to care as much about her appearance," That's a relief.

Kjelle took this as an invitation to continue on," You were a beautiful and vibrant woman, despite the ill times we lived in. You taught me how to be strong. You taught me to survive."

"All right, kid, sit down," Sully grabbed both her daughter and her future husband's wrists, dragging them over to the scattered remains of the trumpet sectionals," I want to know every last detail about the future."

Meanwhile, Panne had spotted something very interesting from the opposite side of the room; there was a boy with an eerily familiar tattoo on his arm, one that was only awarded to those who were part of the Taguel tribe. When her curiosity overtook her, she grabbed Libra by his bicep sleeve and dragged him over to interrogate the boy," You."

Yarne yelped and jumped back a few feet, holding his hand to his chest in a vain attempt to soothe his rapidly beating heart," Gyah! Y-you scared me! Don't go sneaking up behind people! You'll give them whiplash..."

Panne narrowed her eyes," What is your name?"

"...Yarne," He awkwardly scanned the room, searching for anything to look at accept his parents," Don't you remember? You're the one who gave it to me."

Libra gently laid his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder," I think that this boy is implying that he is your son."

The teenager nodded," Yeah-well, I'm both of your sons-I mean, you both had me-Wait, let me start over; You are both my parents."

Panne's eyes flickered from his tattoo to the blonde streak in his hair that resembled Libra's. It was true that the resemblance between them was uncanny, and this boy didn't seem like the lying type,"...So you truly are my child?"

"Um, I'm a taguel, right?" He motioned towards his tattoo, the same one that she bared on her arm," I kind of have to be."

The girl looked him over one last time before sighing," I suppose blood does not lie. I am pleased to see you, my son. You represent a new hope for our tribe."

"No pressure there..."

Libra chuckled lightheartedly," Come now, Panne. You don't want to stress our child out more than he already is."

She rolled her eyes," Don't you understand? He is living proof that man and taguel can coexist. A new era is upon us."

"Hey, I didn't do anything special. I was just born," Yarne pointed out," You're the one who proved all that bridging-the-gap stuff. You're the one who married a non-Taguel," He chuckled bashfully," Er, thanks for doing that, by the way. Even if I can't take credit for it, I'm proud of my heritage."

Panne allowed one of her rare smiles to grace her lips," It gladdens me to see my son value pride...May you keep it always."

Ricken, who was watching from his spot in the corner of the room, grinned at the memory of reuniting with his own child. He wished that Nowi was there with him to see what the experience was like for the other kids, but she had gone to pick up Nah from school. Seeing the other children find their parents made him feel a lot more mature and appreciate how lucky he was.

"Uh, you're Ricken, right?"

The freshman blinked in surprise and turned to find the source of the voice, which turned out to be none other than Dimitri," Of course I am. What are you doing here, Dimitri? Shouldn't you be...doing whatever you do during the day?"

The boy beamed, lighting up the entire room with his smile," Oh, so you know my name? That's pretty cool! I've been told O look a lot like my dad, which is probably why you mistook me for him," The teenager straightened up as he presented himself," You're my uncle! My name is Dimitri, but I go by my middle name, Novak. I'm actually Dimitri's son," Much like earlier, he eagerly held out his hand for Ricken to shake," Gods, I haven't seen you in forever! It's so good to be with you again!"

Ricken felt the information swipe through his brain, triggering the memory of the lies his brother had told him,"...Uh, Novak was it? How old are you?"

"Almost eighteen. Why do you ask?"

"When is your birthday?"

He furrowed his eyebrows, wondering why his uncle was avoiding answering his seemingly harmless question," June 20th...Uncle Ricken, is something wrong? You look pale."

That meant that Dimitri's wife was already two months into her pregnancy. Everything about that thought was incredibly foreign to Ricken, especially because his brother was only 23 years old. How could this be happening? He rubbed his temples wearily," I'm fine. Things are just...complicated."

Although he wanted to push the feeling away, Novak was starting to get uneasy. Neither Kjelle or Yarne's parents reacted this way when they revealed who they were. If anything, they seemed pleased to reunite with their future kids. Was there something wrong with him? The brunette clenched and unclenched his fists in a vain attempt to calm himself," Ah...okay, I guess. When do you think I'll be able to meet my parents?"

"I don't know, they're both still in college," Ricken lied. He couldn't just hand over Dimitri's future son! His brother freaked out when he saw Nah, how would he react if his child was standing before him? Still, he couldn't just leave Novak to fend for himself," My girlfriend might be able to house you."

The seventeen year old unintentionally winced at the word "might". There was definitely something they weren't telling him. A part of him wanted to interrogate it, but he had a very bad feeling about what the answer to his question would be," That's okay," He tried to reassure," I can find a place to stay. I mean, I've lasted this long, right?"

Ricken bit his lip sheepishly and tried to think of a possible solution, knowing deep down that his nephew wasn't at fault. Before he could come up with an answer, Nowi pounced in with Nah in tow," Hi Ricken!"

Novak's expression lightened up immensely when he laid eyes on his cousin," Nah!"

The auburn haired girl dropped the mature attitude she usually upheld and squealed, eagerly jumping into the older boy's arms," Novak! You're finally here!"

"Gods, it's so good to see you safe!" He murmured happily into the top of her head," I should've stayed with you when I traveled back, but Yarne and I got separated from you somehow."

"It's okay," Nah giggled blissfully, equally as elated to see her cousin," Gerome looked after me!"

Nowi, who was watching the two reunite, spoke up in confusion," Uh...who are you?"

Novak released his cousin and burst forward, eagerly shaking his aunt's hand," Hi! I'm Novak, your nephew!"

Thankfully for him, the green haired girl's face split into a huge smile," I didn't know that Dimitri would have a kid too! Wowie! You're so handsome!"

The brunette blushed while Ricken's eyes narrowed jealously," Wait, you're saying that our nephew is attractive?! Isn't that a bit weird?!"

"I can say he's handsome," Nowi retorted," It's a thing aunts do, dummy. I mean, look at him!" Novak's face turned a deeper shade of red as the family turned their attention to his features, eventually nodding their heads in agreement.

Vaike chuckled from his spot next to Markel, the seemingly only other person in the band who was still single," Ha, this is just like that one time at camp! Teach still can't wrap it around his head that all of his buddies got married and had babies."

Markel snickered in agreement," I can't believe it either. Thank gods Hadlee doesn't have a spouse or child...that would just be super weird."

"Who says I don't?" Hadlee commented from above her brother's shoulder, causing him to nearly jump out of his skin in shock," What? Would it be so weird for me to have a boyfriend?"

"Yes! You're fourteen! You don't know anything about romance."

"Uh, yeah I do. I've seen it happen all the time in Rival; Red Dawn," She argued," Don't forget about the Internet either! To certain standards, I'm just as experienced as a senior."

Markel rolls his eyes," No, you're not."

"Your brother is correct," A sudden voice added in," It is illogical for a fourteen year old female to know about courting when she hasn't courted anyone," The group turned their attention to the tall, red haired boy standing in front of them," Pardon my intrusion, but I wish to speak with Vaike."

The siblings exchanged confused looks with said boy before shrugging and leaving him to fend for himself. The blonde stuck out his tongue at the two and turned back to the redhead, observing him with curiosity," You're a future kid, right? Who're your parents?"

Laurent cleared his throat," My biological parents are the Triffs, but you oversaw me to make sure I was protected when I was just a lad. In plainly spoken words, you are my godfather."

"Teach wasn't married, right?" The older boy furrowed his eyebrows and shook his head in confusion," Ha! Guess the ladies couldn't tie ol' Teach down!"

"...Right," Laurent allowed a small smile to grace his lips," You are younger than I in this time."

Vaike blinked, his sense of humor quickly replaced by his pride," Hold on, how old're you?"

The redhead relayed the information with a touch of amusement," I shall be turning twenty-one on the fifteenth of April. You seem to be only seventeen at the moment."

"Uh, Teach is eighteen because he had to retake third grade!" He defended snarkily," Look who's not so smart anymore! Mr. Fancy Big Words!"

"You may have that leverage, but I am still older than you," His godson smirked victoriously. Despite not being related to the man, it was somewhat obvious that he had picked up some of Vaike's personality traits. At least, that's what he told himself when he saw the annoyed look on his godfather's face," You do not enjoy suffering defeat, do you?"

"Shut'up."

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When Inigo had returned to the hospital room, Levy was more than surprised. She knew about his tendency to leave other people, and while she also knew that it never came from ill-will, she had prepared herself to be alone. Oddly enough, a tremendous weight was lifted off her shoulders when he re-entered the room and settled down next to her.

The two fell asleep on the ground, making sure that her godparents were comfortable above all else. They woke up somewhat early the next day, just in case a nurse came in and tried to kick them out. Levy decided that it was time to get breakfast and headed down to the food court, but Inigo decided that he wanted to check in on Basilio.

Much to his horror, the man was awake when he walked into the room. How was this possible? He had been shot the day before! Shouldn't he be out for at least another day? The police chief narrowed his eyes at the intruder," Do I...know you from somewhere?"

Inigo shook his head furiously," N-No, sir! I was just...," His voice trailed off as he tried to find a proper excuse,"...checking in on you! It's good to see you awake-"

"Wait, now I remember," Basilio looked over the boy one last time before declaring," You're the one that brought me here."

The brunette's jaw dropped," How'd you guess?"

"I recognized your voice," He replied, wincing as he did so. It seemed that his body was slowly becoming aware of the pain he was in again," Why'd you do it?"

"Do what?"

Basilio rolled his eyes impatiently," Why'd you save me, boy?!"

The sixteen year old bit his lip, torn between telling the man that meant so much to his parents the truth or making up a more reasonable story. If Basilio was dying, he'd want to hear the truth...right? Inigo sighed and collapsed into a nearby chair," Do you want me to be completely honest with you?"

"Why wouldn't I? Are you Grimleal?"

"No, but Walhart thinks I am," He laughed bitterly," He almost killed me too."

Basilio looked over him again, this time checking for any signs of injury," You seemed to have healed nicely."

"You can't see it, but there are stitches on the side of my head, bruises covering my stomach, and a pretty ugly brand on my chest," Inigo shuddered at the thought of how bad of a shape he was in when he first woke up," Of course, you've got it worse than I do, but...," He rubbed his temples wearily," I'm tired of the violence. I'm tired of waking up in pain or worrying that a friend of mine might not make it back alive. I'm just...tired."

The police chief nodded sadly," You act a lot older than you are, boy."

"With all due respect, sir, I've been through more than boys my age have."

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Lon'qu and Olivia first priority was to make sure Basilio was okay. They both skipped school, claiming that they were sick through a fake email from their parents, and headed off to visit their friend one last time. Both students were incredibly uneasy and quiet, but neither of them could bring themselves to express their feelings.

They were halfway to the hospital when Olivia spoke up," Why is it so sunny outside when darkness looms over us all?"

Lon'qu blinked in surprise, shocked that the once meek girl he knew would say such a thing. He almost commented upon it when he remembered what she had gone through with her mother. She had hidden that from everyone for so long; did that mean she was hiding her depression as well? No, he wouldn't allow that to take over her again," Maybe it's because something fortunate going to happen."

"Or maybe...not so fortunate?" The pair flipped around, only to find themselves facing a large, looming figure hidden in the shadows of an alley way," I'm afraid your little girlfriend was right; soon all you're going to see is darkness."

The police trainee didn't waste any time when he saw the man pull out a gun and shoot; Lon'qu wrapped one of his arms around Olivia's head and the other around her waist and tackled her onto the ground, narrowly avoiding the bullet. His forearms prickled with pain as soon as they made contact with the concrete, but he ignored it, knowing that that could have been Olivia's head," What do you want with us?" He growled, not moving from his spot shielding the dancer.

The person stepped from the shadows, revealing himself for the pair to see," I'm just eliminating possible threats," Walhart leered at the two," After I dispose of you two, I'll move onto Miss Doe and her fellow Grimleal members. I'll be a hero!"

"You'll be a murderer," Walhart's smug expression dropped as he turned to face a sixteen year old boy who had jumped in front of the couple. He cocked his head in nervous amusement when he saw the man's troubled expression," Ah, so you remember me?"

"I was hoping that you'd be dead by now," He murmured under his breath," Oh well. I guess I'll just do the job myself."

Walhart aimed his gun at the boy and prepared to shoot, but a small, thirteen year old girl jumped out from behind him and wrapped her arms around his, knocking the weapon from his hands and onto the ground. The fugitive groaned in annoyance before turning around and grabbing her head, using all of his strength to knock it against the wall. The boy's eyes widened in horror," Levy!" Without second thought, he rushed forward, picking up a glass bottle from the ground and slamming it against his head.

The former principal rose his eyebrows at him and dropped the girl from his grasp, turning his attention back to the sixteen year old. He grabbed the boy by the collar and shoved him with his back against the wall, flicking out a switch knife and digging it into the boy's shoulder. The brunette grunted in pain, but stood as firmly as he could," You're just as pathetic and stupid as I remember you being. I spared your life, and this is how you thank me? I won't make that mistake again," Walhart yanked the knife from his shoulder blade and aimed to strike him in the neck, but a gunshot interrupted him.

The man furrowed his eyebrow in confusion and turned to Lon'qu, who had picked up his discarded gun and was aiming at him with smoke coming out of the barrel," That was for Basilio."

The police intern watched as Walhart's eyes fell on the bullet hole in his chest," Nngh...Do you see?" He knees gave out, forcing the once powerful man to lean against the wall for support," Often violence...is the only way...You will regret...not listening...to me," He slid down, collapsing onto the ground and staring straight ahead," My conquest...ends here..."

The alley was silent during Walhart's last moments, and for a few minutes, everyone was too scared to move. Much to everyone's surprise, it was Olivia that got to her feet first and moved to Lon'qu," Are you alright?" She cupped his face in her hands, trying to get a response from her stoic boy," Lon'qu, it's going to be okay."

"I just killed a man."

"Yes, and in doing so, you've saved our lives," She shakily pulled the gun from his hands and gently set it on the ground, immediately turning back to him afterwards," It's going to be okay, I promise. Basilio would be proud."

Meanwhile, the boy who had just been stabbed got to his feet and stumbled to his female friend, collapsing onto the ground next to her," Levy? Come on, Lev, you gotta wake up."

She hissed in pain and slowly opened her eyes, automatically squeezing them back shut right afterwards," Everything's too bright, Inigo."

Shit, that probably meant she had a concussion. Inigo swore under his breath and ignored the searing pain shooting from his own arm to slip her head onto his lap as a cushion of sorts," Okay, just relax. Help is coming soon."

Thankfully, Inigo turned out to be right. People had reported the gunshots and called the police, and in a matter of five or ten minutes, they showed up and gave immediate medical treatment to both of the children. Flavia made a beeline for Lon'qu and Olivia, who were sitting in the middle of the alleyway with pale faces," Oh, thank the gods you two are alright!" She crouched down to their level and gulped when she saw the dread in Lon'qu's eyes," What did you do?"

"I killed him," He mumbled," It...it was the only way...he would've killed them-"

"I know," Flavia soothed," It takes a brave man to sacrifice his innocence. Thankfully for us, this means that Walhart is no longer a threat. We should see Robin and the others start to attend school again in no time," When that didn't seem to convince him, she continued on," We're all proud of you, Lon'qu."

Before she could add onto that thought, Raimi approached the three," The teenagers are stable and safe. We are going to take them to the hospital to give them proper treatment. Would you two like to go along with?"

Olivia furrowed her eyebrows," I-I guess. Are y-you sure t-they'd be okay with c-complete strangers c-coming with them?"

"Strangers? You mean you don't know who they are?" Flavia frowned," But wait, didn't you say that they bought you time to eliminate Walhart? Strangers wouldn't do that, would they?"

Lon'qu and Olivia shared a hesitant look. Although she wasn't implying it, they both had a very good idea who they kids might have been," Don't worry, we're going to figure that out."

* * *

**Walhart is dead! Okay, so I didn't really think about having Lon'qu kill him until I did my last playthrough. It made the most sense to me, because he would want vengeance for Basilio! Okay, chapter review time! A cute little StahlxCordelia moment at the beginning, in which they foreshadowed things that would happen later in the story. Virion got to meet the four children (I had to go back and forth between a dictionary website in order to write Laurent accurately), and he brought them to the others! Kjelle is interesting to me, and I'm glad I finally got her in this story! Same with the other two boys; I'm happy to have some new characters to write! Speaking of new characters, we have Novak! Don't forget him, because his story is going to be interesting. If you remember from a few chapters ago (either two or three), his dad, Dimitri, got extremely stressed out when Nah mentioned his child (I'm going to say this ahead of time; I have fleshed the heck out of Dimitri, Ruby, and Novak's stories). How do you think Dimitri will react when (or if) he meets his child? Novak is already suspicious because of the way Ricken acted around him. Anyways, Inigo got to talk to Basilio for a short time, but the most impacting part of the chapter was the fight between them and Walhart. That part was pretty straight forward, so I'm going to let you guys look into that yourselves! Review time!**

**potatoman098:** **Walhart was on the loose, but now he's dead. Woohoo! It only took three (or five if you count Basilio and Cobalt) people to take him down, haha. Now that this arc is wrapping up, I'm going to focus on something that has been on the horizon for centuries; State Championships! Thank you for reviewing!**

**SnowyDawn17:**** Yes, the couple we (including myself) have all awaited for has arrived! I'm excited to be able to delve into the relationship deeper. I'm glad you liked how it turned out, because it took me forever to work out a way that they would get together. Yay, you liked Hewitt and Anna's confession! I was proud of how adorable it turned out! Thank you for the review!**

**supersoldiers3:** **That's okay! I love hearing from you whenever you can, so I understand if you're busy from time to time! Gaius and Sumia's confession was so sweet! I'm satisfied with the way it turned out! Ha, that's so funny, because both my brother and I ship Inigo and Lucina too! Fun fact, my brother and I agree on basically no couples in fire emblem, despite that one. My original thought for Hewitt was that he was going to be a quiet, somewhat awkward boy that Anna constantly pestered. It turned into something much, much deeper, as you can tell. I can see why you ship them! When I first played the game and didn't understand the shipping mechanics in the game, I tried to put Anna with Gaius. Thank you for reviewing! **

**MissShane12:**** Thank you! I'm glad you like the twists in this story, there's going to be soooo many more later in the story! As for future kids dying...ah...well...I won't comment on that. Spoilers! I would hate myself if they died in my playthrough. The only person I've let die was Gangrel, and that was because I had no idea how to recruit him. Sorry Gangrel. Morgan's story is super sad, and it's only going to get more depressing! Thank you for reviewing! **

**flowerfortunes:** **Hi! That's okay, I'm glad to hear from you now! Yay, you like my story! It's always nice to hear that people like my ideas as well, because sometimes I'm worried that I'm making it overly complicated. Heh, I'd have low expectations too (If I wasn't in band, of course). Aww, I'm so flattered! I get that a lot, which is fun because I like hearing that people aren't expecting the plot twists! It always makes the story more fun to read! I'm excited to write more Say'rixTiki stuff too! Woah, that's so cool! When I was in middle school and had to march for a show, I had to play the cymbals because Oboes (The instrument I play) cannot march. The reed sticks out, so if I trip or something, it would stab the roof of my mouth. Haha, I'm not sure if all the kids will play instruments, but Lucina definitely plays the trumpet and Nah is a percussionist. I'll touch more on that in the next chapter, which will start heading off towards State Championships. No, don't apologize for rambling! I love rambling! Thank you for reveiwing!**

**Alright, if you haven't read it in the responses, I will repeat the plan for the next few chapters; It's State Championship time! That means that both our lovely drum majors will be back in the next chapter to lead the band to victory! Let's see who shows up in the next few chapters, because there will definitely be at least one new face. Okay, so I think that's it! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you guys next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	39. Chapter 39 Last Minute Arrangements

**...Hey guys...I'm so sorry I didn't post last weekend! It didn't occur to me that I had tech week and then show weekend, and even when it finally did, I thought that I could whip out a chapter anyways. I was so wrong. So so wrong. If I wasn't tired enough as it was with constantly running the same show full of little kids over and over again, I was pushed over the edge when a guy I didn't like kept making advances on me and stressing me out. Then I got sick (I'm still sick), so writing the chapter got pushed back to the least of my priorities. I thought about posting an announcement explaining my situation, but I didn't want you guys to get your hopes up, only to find something that wasn't a chapter. Don't worry, I won't give up on this fanfic, and I hopefully won't have to take a week off like I did last week. Now, lets move on with this chapter! Last week Walhart died, four future children were introduced (Yarne, Kjelle, Laurent, and Novak), and the grimleal kids got to come out of hiding. Oh yeah, and Inigo and Levy got pretty roughed up. Okay, happy reading!**

**I do no own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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The first and last people Inigo wanted to see when he woke up stood in front of his hospital bed expectantly," Who are you?"

While there was a small part of him that wanted to jump for joy at the sight of his parents alive and healthy, the larger part of him knew that doing so would only scare them away," Ah...where do I even start?"

Olivia spared a glance over to Lon'qu, who still seemed shaken from his earlier encounter, and started the interrogation," Your name is Inigo, right?" He nodded," I think that a friend of ours, Chrom, mentioned you last week when the future children told everyone who they were."

"We briefly met a while ago before I had an unfortunate run in with Walhart," He paused slightly before asking a question of his own," Is Levy okay? She was the friend I had with me-"

"She's fine," Lon'qu finally spoke up, causing both occupants of the room to jump a little," She has a somewhat severe concussion, but that's the worst that came out of it. You are in a far worse state."

Inigo started to shrug, but a shot of pain attacked his shoulder, brutally reminding him of what he had gone through," I've endured worse...Are you okay?" When Lon'qu didn't answer, his son pressed on," You haven't killed anyone before, have you?"

The brunette was silent for a few seconds before briefly responding," Why would that matter to you?"

"Sometimes taking a life is just as bad as losing your own," The older boy looked up in surprise at Inigo, who blushed at his intense stare and tried to steer the conversation in a different direction," At least, that's what Lucina told me."

"That means you are a future, right?" Olivia asked, immediately overcome by a mixture of emotions when he nodded again," Are you...our child?" To be honest, the question had been drilling a hole through her head since she first laid eyes on him. There was no mistaking the resemblance he had to the two, and while his personality was more outgoing than either of the pair could imagine themselves being, there seemed to be no denying his origins.

Lon'qu sent her a surprised look, curious to why she had said "our" instead of "my". Was she implying what he thought she was? Did she return his feelings to the point where she was willing to accept this boy as their child? He swallowed thickly, knowing now why she was acting so comfortably in front of a complete stranger," I need to use the bathroom," He lamely excused himself, zipping out of the room as fast as he could.

Inigo seemed just as awestruck as his father," Uh...well...I...," He sighed in defeat," Fine. I am your child. How'd you figure it out so quickly?"

"Call it my _mother's intuition_," She giggled, taking her teenage boy's hand in hers," Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

"W-What do you mean by that?" Inigo laughed nervously," I never said that Lon'qu was my father."

Olivia rolled her eyes," If he isn't your father, how do you know his name?"

The boy opened his mouth to protest, but the words died in his mouth. He always knew that his mother was smart, but he had expected this younger, more naive version of her to be more timid like everyone said she was. She was being blunt to the point that it felt almost as if she had slapped him in the face," B-But you and father aren't dating yet...right?"

She bit her lip," Not yet, but I know he feels the same for me. I just don't want to go too fast, for both of our sakes. I feel that we'll come to each other when we're ready."

Little did she know, Lon'qu was standing outside of the door eavesdropping. This meant that she liked him! What was he supposed to do now? Confusion filled every crevice of his being, half saying that he should wait and see how things play out, the other half frantically yelling at him to burst into the room and tell Olivia what he had been feeling for almost a month now. As much as he wanted to do the second option, his fears forced him to wait outside the door.

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After being gone for over a week, it felt odd returning to the podium. Robin, who had arrived early in order to avoid some of the dirty looks students gave her in the hall, anxiously swiveled in her chair. She felt as if she was forgetting something in the back of her mind, but she couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was.

"Something seems to be on your mind, darling."

The white haired girl turned her attention to Maribelle, who had just entered the room, and smiled," Oh, it's nothing."

The sophomore rolled her eyes," Nonsense. Both of us know what something's bothering you."

Robin tried to hold her ground, but after catching her younger friend's stern look, she backed down," I just that I feel like I'm forgetting something, that's all. It's not a new sensation for me, especially since...," She shook her head," Like I said, it's nothing."

"Ugh, it's bad enough that Lissa is hiding something from me, but now you don't trust me either?" She crossed her arms huffily," Fine! Maybe I won't trust you to lead us in State Championships!"

...State Championships? Robin's eyes popped wide open in realization, and she had to cover her mouth in horror," Oh gods, that's what I was forgetting! We have State on Wednesday!"

Maribelle looked torn between being relieved that her friend wasn't hiding anything serious and annoyed that one of their drum majors had forgotten the thing they had been working on for over a month," You'd better start working now if you want to be prepared."

"Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods, oh gods, oh gods-"

"Calm down, Darling!" The blonde reprimanded," We can't have a panicky drum major, can we?" Robin shook her head shamefully," Exactly! Now, since you seem to be quite flustered, I will take it upon myself to help you get caught up."

Since when did Maribelle know things about being a drum major? Robin smiled sheepishly and tried to wave her offer away," Er, you really don't have to-"

"Bup-bup-bup! Nothing is less noble than leaving a task half done!" When she caught the older girl's hesitant look, she pushed on," You needn't be shy. We're intimate friends, after all, remember?"

"I guess..."

"Perfect! Then let us begin with hotel arrangements and reviewing drill!" The sophomore grabbed Robin by the elbow and lead her into Frederick's office," Then we shall move on to renting a bus and practicing the music. We will have you ready to tackle State in no time!"

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Arrangements for State Championships were very similar to the arrangements for Districts; nearly everyone shared the same roommates (adding additional rooms for the future children), and when everyone filed into the bus on Tuesday night, Chrom couldn't help but feel nostalgic. His girlfriend, who stood by his side trying extremely hard not to fall asleep on his shoulder, only watched as he checked people in," So, are you going to tell me why you're so tired, or am I going to have to guess?"

"Maribelle."

"...I don't understand."

"You don't want to," Robin yawned sleepily and snuggled closer into her boyfriend's side," Who do we still have to wait for?"

The blue haired boy checked the list," Well, Tanith, Cobalt, Anna, Lon'qu, Olivia, Nowi, and Say'ri are still missing-"

"My friends!" The pair glanced up, only to find a slightly bedraggled Say'ri approaching them," I'm sorry I was late, but I wanted to check in on Cobalt and Tanith before leaving-"

Robin furrowed her eyebrows," What do you mean by check in? Why aren't they here?"

Just like that, the former drum major's face fell into a guilt-ridden aura," You haven't heard about it, have you?" She rubbed her temples wearily before continuing," Cobalt was shot on Friday protecting Tanith from Walhart. I assume that Olivia and Lon'qu aren't coming either, seeing that Basilio is still in the hospital trying to heal from his wounds."

"I thought that Walhart died..."

"He did," Say'ri hugged herself tightly," Lon'qu was the one that shot him."

The couple stood frozen in shock, surprised that they could have missed so much in the time slot that they were in hiding," Is he okay?" Robin stuttered, worried about the state of her stoic friend.

"They're both fine, just shaken up. I doubt that either of them will be able to attend State Championships, though."

Her worry quickly melded into panic when the realization of missing two members of the color guard, a percussionist, and a trumpet player hit her. While the second two missing players could easily be temporarily replaced by future children, the option of having little to no color guard was like a punch to the gut," Oh gods, that means that Anna's going to have to march alone!"

"I'm going to have to what!?" The group cringed and turned to Anna, whose face had turned into a deathly pale shade of white," That would mean that I'd have to use baton! Listen guys, I can barely toss my flag! How am I supposed to fling around something smaller than my arm?!"

"Uh, I might be able to help you with that," Once again, the group turned to face the last of their missing band members, surprised to find her accompanied by another teenage boy," My mom used to be on the color guard, and she taught me a few tricks when things weren't...you know, trying to kill us."

Chrom rose his eyebrow suspiciously," Who are you?"

The teenager blushed and mentally kicked himself for not introducing himself to them," My name is Novak. I'm Nowi and Ricken's nephew."

Nowi hopped up and down in excitement," Isn't my nephew a little hottie?"

If he wasn't red before, Novak's face was the exact shade of a stop sign," Aunt Nowi...don't embarrass me in front of the Lucina's parents."

"You know Lucina?" Robin didn't know why she was so surprised; everyone seemed to know who her daughter was.

"Of course I do! She's one of my best friends!" Novak brightened when he connected the dots," Wait, if you know about Lucina, that means that she's here, right?"

Chrom crossed his arms and approached the boy, gaining more and more threatening the closer he got," You seem overly excited to see my daughter."

Novak held up his hands to serve as a barrier of sorts between them," D-Don't worry, sir! I could never-not that she isn't beautiful-I mean-oh gods, let me start over," He grinned bashfully," We're just friends."

The father narrowed his eyes at him and was about to lecture him when Robin grabbed him lightly by the elbow and pulled him back," Don't scare him off. He seems very sweet, and I doubt that he likes our daughter in that way," She winked at Novak, who smiled thankfully," Anyways, we would love to have you on our guard for the championships. Anna, will you show him the drill and the videos on the way?"

The redhead pouted," But I wanted to sit by Hewitt!"

"You can still sit by him, but have Novak be nearby just in case he has any questions," Anna huffed, but Robin took it as her agreeing," Alrighty then. Everyone's here, so let's pack up the bus and go!"

The group grabbed their belongings and stuffed them in the luggage department before heading on too the bus themselves. Chrom and Robin took their seats near the front, Anna and Hewitt sat behind them, and Novak sat across from the couple alone. Nowi went to accompany Ricken in the back, and Say'ri seated herself next to Tiki.

About five minutes after the bus left the school, Robin was tapped on the shoulder. She glanced at Chrom, whose blissful look hardened, and hesitantly turned to face the one who had distrusted her; Marie. Robin felt herself narrow her eyes at the light blue haired girl," Yes?"

"Uh, I know that Chrom already knows this...and he probably told you about what I did already," Marie rubbed her arm uncomfortably," But I wanted to apologize in person."

"...apologize for what?" The white haired girl asked with dread.

The sophomore gulped when she realized that Chrom had not told his girlfriend what she had done. At this point, she could've made up an excuse and let her bad deeds get brushed underneath the rug, but she knew it wasn't right. If she was going to redeem herself, she had to start being honest and stop pretending to be something she wasn't," I'm the one that told Walhart about your mark because I was jealous of you," The silence that followed her confession was unbearable, so she started sputtering out apologies to make the blow weaker," I'm so sorry! I never meant for you to get arrested! I just thought that you might get suspended or something! What was I supposed to do? It's bad enough that you're dating Chrom because all of my friends are constantly pressuring me to make a move on him! That's the only reason they keep me around! They like watching me fail, and they know I'll never get him because I'm nowhere near as pretty and nice as you!"

The couple's anger quickly faded into an odd form of understanding. No wonder she was so mean; she was being peer pressured into it. To be honest, it reminded Chrom of his old friends and how crude they were at times. Robin, on the other hand, felt a twinge of pain in her heart when she saw tears start to escape the sophomore's eyes," Why didn't you just tell me in the first place?" She asked gently," You will always have friends in the Shepherds."

Maria sniffled and wiped her nose with the back of her hand," I don't think they like me very much."

"I bet they'll like you if you be yourself around them," Robin replied positively," I mean, I already like the real you much better than the person your so called friends wanted you to be."

"R-Really?"

"Of course!"

The blue haired girl smiled hopefully," Does this mean that you forgive me?"

Robin grimaced at the thought of the week in jail that she had just experienced, but she couldn't let this girl guilt herself any longer. There was also the fact that she had met her brother thanks to her, so she couldn't really be mad," I do."

Maria felt a ginormous weight be lifted off of her shoulders with those words," Oh, thank you so much! You're the best!" She looked between the two, who were obviously wanting some alone time, and clasped her hands behind her back," I'll go now. Sorry for interrupting you!" She made a move to run to back to her seat, but the bus took a sharp turn and launched her into a boy," Gah, I'm so sorry!" She straightened up immediately," I'll just be on my..."

Her voice trailed off when she made eye contact with what could possibly be the most attractive boy she had ever laid eyes on; he had bright blue eyes and soft, light brown hair with chiseled features that she had only seen on characters in the books she read," Are you okay?"

She shook the fantasies that she was already starting to create between herself and the boy away and smiled sheepishly," I'm fine. Totally fine. Never been better!"

Maria internally cursed herself for being the stupid fan girl that everyone knew her to be and tried to start over, only for her to be cut off by the boy," Were you just crying? Your face is all wet."

She felt her smile slip away, replaced by a furious blush," No...my contact was just bothering me."

"Mhm, your contact," He repeated in a deadpan voice. He waited for a few seconds just in case she decided to tell him anything, but when she didn't, he took a different approach," My name is Novak. What's yours?"

"...Maria."

Novak grinned," That's a pretty name! My uncle was friends with a girl named Maria-" His eyes widened in realization," Oh, now I get it! You're-" He cut himself off when he was harshly reminded of the last time he introduced himself to someone who knew his parents. He didn't want to scare another person off," Nevermind. Forget I said anything."

This time, Maria was the one to become concerned," Are you sure?"

"Yeah, but...can you sit by me for the rest of the trip? You don't have to, of course-"

Wait, he wanted her to sit by him? But she was a huge nobody! Maria couldn't keep the childish giggle from escaping her lips and nodded eagerly," No, I want to! It'll be fun!"

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Everything had been going fine until the bus's windshield wiper broke. Despite the fact that it was neither raining or snowing, Frederick insisted that he take his car and go to immediately buy a new one. That left the kids stranded on the side of the road with Tharja, which meant that most of them left the bus to get some fresh air. Cordelia happened to be one of those people, and much to her surprise, she came across Sumia, who was sitting cross legged at the foot of a tree with a dozen daisies torn apart at her feet," I'll mess up...I'll do fine...I'll mess up...I'll do fine-"

"Sumia, what are you doing?"

The brunette held her hand over her heart in shock, but when she discovered that it was her best friend, she relaxed and patted the seat next to her," Oh, just seeing how well we'll do at State Championships."

Cordelia hesitantly sat next to her friend and rose her eyebrow questioningly,"...By pulling petals off a flower?"

"Yes," When she noticed the troubled expression on her friend's face, she frowned nervously," Why? Is that strange?

Cordelia shrugged," Well, no stranger than any other attempt to foretell the future, I suppose. I don't put much stock in horoscopes. Fate is what you make it, I always say."

Sumia stared at her friend for a few seconds before throwing the flower onto the ground and pulling her knees to her chest," I wish I was strong as you, Cordelia."

Cordelia blinked in surprise," How so?"

"You have so much confidence in yourself you actually think you can control even fate," She sighed forlornly," I'm just thrilled if I can walk through camp without tripping on a stool."

The redhead patted her friend's shoulder comfortingly," Our only limits are the ones we place on ourselves."

Her gaze fell onto the ground," But..."

"In fact, it's time you got rid of yours," She pushed the pile of torn flowers away from Sumia and clapped her hands together," First rule: no more flower fortunes."

Sumia's eyes flew open in horror," What?! But how will I-"

Cordelia held a finger to her friend's lips to silence her," Second rule: no questions! You don't need some weed to tell you what to do, Sumia. You control your own destiny," When she still looked hesitant, the cornet player tried to reassure her," Trust me in this."

"Er, okay..."

"Hey, Cordelia?" The two girls turned around to find Gaius awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck," Can I talk to Stumbles in private? It's sort of important."

The redhead squealed internally and winked at her friend before launching herself onto her feet and patting the ginger on the back," You take good care of her, okay?"

He blushed almost shyly and waited until Cordelia was out of sight to sit next to Sumia," So...I'm just gonna cut to the chase; You kissed me, and we both like each other a lot, so we should date, right?" He gulped,"...Right?"

Sumia felt all of her insecurities float away with his nervous behavior. To be honest, most of her flower fortunes had been regarding her possible relationship with Gaius, but like Cordelia said, She was the one in charge of her own fate. She giggled at his bashfulness. It was rare to find the normally cocky boy be brought down to his knees because of a girl. Despite the fact that everything had tried to keep them apart, they were still falling in love. She took on of his hands in hers and nodded cheerfully," Right."

He chuckled and released the breath he had been holding," Good. I don't know why I was so nervous. I mean, Cynthia already accidentally told me that you were her mother and you were the one that kissed me-"

"Wait, Cynthia is my daughter?"

Gaius stopped mid-sentence and cringed, unaware that the revelation was making all of her worries float away," Look, if it makes you uncomfortable-"

"Uncomfortable? Are you kidding me?!" She rocketed into her feet and dragged her new boyfriend up with her," I wanted her to be mine from the first moment I saw her! We need to go tell her we know now!"

The brunette kissed Gaius and the cheek before heading straight towards Cynthia. As soon as she reached her, she used her free hand to grab Cynthia's and pulled her away from the Justice Cabal to a more private spot," Sumia? What are you doing-"

"Why didn't you tell me I was your mother?"

The ginger's jaw dropped in shock, unsure of how to answer," You're not my...," When Sumia placed her hands on her hips and shot her a look that demanded an answer, she gave in," I didn't want you to be rushed into a relationship, even if it was with father," She gave her mother an apologetic smile," Can you ever forgive me?"

"How could I not?" Sumia wrapped her daughter into a warm hug," You're the best daughter any girl could want!" Something suddenly dropped on her toe and interrupted the hug," Hold on. You dropped something," She bent down to retrieve it, only to find that it was the same exact necklace that she was wearing,"...A Pegasus?"

Cynthia practically ripped it from her mother's hands and hastily clasped it back around her neck," S-sorry! I'll take that back!"

"Why are you carrying that around?"

The younger girl played with the pendant in her hands and shrugged weakly," Because it the last thing you gave to me before you died. You promised you'd come home..."

Sumia frowned," Oh dear."

Cynthia turned away and hugged herself tightly," But you broke your promise the day...The day you never came home," She flipped around in one quick motion to face Sumia head on," How could you leave me, Mother? You were a legend! You were invincible!"

"Wait, are you saying I...died?" When Cynthia didn't answer, she grimaced. The last thing she wanted was for children to become orphans. From what she saw with Robin and Gaius, it wasn't an easy experience to handle, especially if she was alone," I'm so sorry, love. I guess I'm not much of a legend after all."

The fourteen year old sniffled,"...You are to me."

How was it that her own daughter already thought more highly of her than she did? She was truly blessed to have such a wonderful family, and she thanked her lucky stars once again that Cynthia was her daughter. Sumia reached forward and wrapped her arms back around the shaking figure of her child,"...I may not be invincible, but at least I was blessed with a wonderful child."

"Oh...oh, Mother...," She buried her head deeper into her mother's embrace," I love you!"

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Thankfully, Frederick returned with the windshield wiper and the rest of the trip went as smooth as possible. They arrived at the hotel in record time and headed off to their rooms to get a good night of sleep. Henry cheerfully sat by the edge of the pool, figuring that he might be able to get in a late night swim before heading off to bed. He figured that he was alone until he heard the door open," Henry?"

"Oh, hey Lissa!" He recognized the voice without even having to look at who it came from and grinned," Did you come to join me?"

"Uh, kind of," He rose his eyebrow in confusion when he saw the troubled look of his pajama clad girlfriend when she settled herself next to him on the edge of the pool," Do you remember that ghost story that you told at camp?"

"Yup! It was pretty scary, wasn't it?"

The blonde smiled weakly," Yeah, it was. I couldn't sleep properly for a week."

Henry laughed," That's because you didn't have your favorite pillow with you, Nya ha!"

"Yeah...," The two sat in an odd silence as they watched the cool water gently caress against their legs, illuminated by the dim lighting that the cheap hotel had supplied them with. Lissa couldn't bring her eyes away from the pool water, probably because it was the only place she knew she could avoid her boyfriend's worried look. She had to say it one way or another, but she dreaded what his answer was going to be," Can I ask you something?" She squeaked, finally mustering up the will to speak up.

The white haired boy felt his girlfriend's unease and scooped her hand up in his," Of _curse_!" When she didn't laugh at his horrible pun, he became increasingly more concerned," Lissa, what's wrong?"

"Are they real?"

"...are what real?"

She tightened her grip on his hand and continued to avoid eye contact," The five figures in your story. The ones that killed the boy's older sister."

Henry felt as if someone had sucked all of the air out of him," W-What?"

"My dad-I mean, Mr. Exalt told our son and his cousins that he saw five shadowy figures push Robin's mother off of a bridge a long time ago. I know that it's probably not real and that that man is a horrible loon, but-" She felt Henry's grip on her hand tighten immensely, causing her to look up in worry," Henry?"

What she saw was the panicked expression of her usually happy-go-lucky boyfriend. His face was even paler than usual, and his eyes were almost glued wide open, showing a pair of dark brown irises that made his eyes look almost black," That can't be true. T-The doctors said it wasn't true. They said that they w-were just figments of m-my imagination."

"Henry, what are you talking about?!"

Her words didn't seem to reach him," Does this mean that they're still following me? That can't be right! I've been taking the pills that they gave me! I haven't seen them in years! They're not real! They're not real! They're not real! They're not-"

"Henry!" Lissa cupped his face in her hands, surprised to find it drenched with either sweat or tears," What's going on?!" He stared at her for a few seconds while breathing heavily before launching himself into her embrace and sobbing uncontrollably. Lissa blinked in surprise and carefully returned the gesture, still confused as to why he was so upset," Henry, what's wrong?"

"I th-thought that I m-made them up," He choked.

Suddenly, she felt dread crawl into her chest. Something definitely wasn't right about this entire situation. At first she thought that it might have been because of his family tormenting him by rebelling the gory story, but with the way he was acting now...," Henry, what are you saying?"

He hugged her even tighter," I didn't make up that story, Lissa. I lived it," The white haired boy looked up to face his girlfriend and clear her confusion. He was met with the terrified face of Lissa, who most likely had already figured out what he was going to say," I was the boy in the story."

* * *

**Inigo finally got to meet his parents! The only trouble is that his parents aren't a couple...yet. I got to add Maribelle and Robin in together for a cute little moment (you can thank _The mystery of edwin drood_ for that, because a character in that sort of reminded me of Maribelle). While writing this chapter, it occurred to me that there was no way on earth that Tanith and Cobalt were going to State. Then I realized that Lon'qu and Olivia wouldn't go either with both Basilio and Inigo in the hospital. I was then blessed with the hilarious realization that that left Anna being the only colorguard member. That's why I gave Novak colorguard skills (I didn't plan on him having them before. I just took pity on Anna). But, thanks to that, I get to segway Novak into meeting his dad in either the next chapter or the one after that (it'll most likely be the next chapter, seeing that this is State championship prep). I gave Marie a bit more of a backstory and gave her a little bit of a relationship with Novak as well. Since she is becoming a bigger character in the story, imagine her to look like the fighter unit of the pegasus knight (the one with blue hair). Sumia got to reunite with Cynthia and have some best friend and boyfriend time! Finally, let's talk about the thing I left you guys off with; Henry's story. Yes, it was always real, and yes, Henry is the boy in it. Henry is the kid that was stalked and beaten for most of his childhood. No wonder he's so crazy (I'm a horrible, awful person, and I'm so sorry Henry). Review time!**

**Kit-Cat Star: ****They are perfect for each other! The only person I like Stahl with other than Cordelia is Tharja, and I only like Cordelia with Stahl. They look and work together the best! I usually try to mix up my pairings, but I've paired them up together three times now. THREE TIMES! I like getting the special conversations too, but I've come to the point where I know most of the dialogue in the story (especially since I have to rewrite and translate it into a modern setting), so I decided to let Lon'qu deal the final blow. It was very satisfying, especially since Olivia was the one backing him up. Thank you for reviewing!****  
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**potatoman098:****Yeah, I've been putting them off for an unbelievably long time now. I don't blame you for forgetting about it. It is hardly a band AU with the amount of drama in it, and I kind of regret that sometimes. But then I think of how awesome all the drama is and shrug it off. Oh well. Grima is coming soon, and it will be a painful, horrible thing. Thank you for reviewing!  
**

**crowsandclouds:** **Cool! I like your pairings for Lissa, and I think I'd like LissaxFrederick better if he wasn't so old. Then again, I paired Gerome with Maribelle, so I can't really blame her. I don't think I've ever paired Ricken with Maribelle, because while they have a very good connection, they both start off relatively weak. It'd be hard to put them together and not have them die easily. I got the game in june too, but I played my brother's game back in February or something. I've beat it around six of seven times, I think. My most recent playthrough is a harder version of my original one with all of my fanfic pairings in it to help inspire me to write. That's ironic, because you guys are what keep me writing this story! Vengeance rules! Thank you for reviewing! **

**SnowyDawn17: ****Hehe, something like that happened. Only instead of her hitting the pillow, it was her getting verbal abuse by Maribelle. I feel so bad for Novak, he's in for a hard time. I didn't realize it until I reached the level while writing this chapter and thought _Oh man, that would work out so well. _Yeah, I was hoping to write that better too, but I'm not perfect. I tried to focus a little bit more on it in this chapter, and I'll have it come up more in future chapters. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Ahylianshepherd:**** I said that his birthday was June 20th, right? If so, that's my birthday! We share a birthday! I'm glad that it makes sense, and with all this positive feedback surrounding it, a part of me wishes that they got a special dialogue. Oh well. When I read the amount of children you said I added, I thought you were exaggerating. Then I actually counted them and realized you were right. Goodness, I added a lot of characters. I know! This fanfic is huge! I wonder how many chapters it's going to have! I'm guessing a little over 50 or something along the lines of that. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Lyndis:** **...? (If this is reguarding me not posting a weekend without any word, I'm sorry! I was super swamped in stress and work and theater and romance I didn't want and what not). **

**So, seeing that my family is telling me to put the computer away and decorate the Christmas tree, I'm going to finish this up quickly. Thank you guys for understanding and I'll see you next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	40. Chapter 40 State Championships

**Hey guys! So now that bowling season has started, Sunday posts will become more common. On Saturdays, I don't usually come home until around 3:00-4:00 P.M. (Eastern Time), so if I were to post on a Saturday, it would be after that. Now that that is out of the way, the day has finally come! It is time for State Championships! Not only that, but we have the three final OCs (most likely) in this story make their appearance! I hope you enjoy! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

* * *

Robin couldn't help but feel nostalgic as she watched the other bands practice early the next morning. It was hard to believe that two months ago she was in the same position, waiting to perform for Districts. So much had changed between now and then; she had just started dating Chrom, and they were still keeping it a secret from the others. They didn't know anything about the future children or her connection to the Grimleal cult. Back then, she was only a drum major. While the simplicity of the title was welcoming and the memories were pleasant, Robin knew that she wouldn't trade anything she had at the moment for her life back then. She valued her new family above her own life, and she would die protecting them if she needed to.

"You seem to be deep in thought."

Robin blinked in surprise and turned to find Chrom, who settled himself next to her and handed her one of his handmade coffees. She smiled softly when she realized he had one himself," I thought you didn't drink coffee."

Her boyfriend chuckled, but something seemed to be bothering him despite his bright demeanor," I didn't get much sleep last night, so I figured that I'd need as much caffeine as I could get."

"Why didn't you get any sleep?"

A part of him knew that she'd ask, and Chrom figured that was why he joined her outside. He could always talk to her, even if the topic was something neither of them wanted to think about," I've just been thinking, that's all."

Robin frowned and wrapped both of her arms around his, snuggling into his side," Do you want to talk about it?"

He responded to her embrace by placing his hand on her leg and anxiously rubbing small circles above her knee in a vain attempt to soothe his mind," I think I'm just sad. After this, marching band will be over. We won't be drum majors anymore," A small, nostalgic look encompassed his features," It's odd to think that if I had not been drum major, I'm not sure I would have found you. Sure, we still would have been with Frederick that weekend, but I don't know if he would have made us go out to find the box of reeds. Hey, did you know that the very reason I wanted to be drum major was to get out of football?" Robin tilted her head in surprise, silently edging him to continue on," My friends and the coach really wanted me to join the team, but Emm didn't want me to get injured, and to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of football. Watching it is okay, but I'd feel like a punching bag out there."

"I didn't know that," She tucked the information away in her brain, smiling softly at the cute bit that she had just learned," I'm glad you decided to be drum major. If it hadn't been for you, I'm not sure where I'd be. I'm depressed we have to let go marching band too."

Chrom sighed," It's like giving away the last bit of childhood I have left," Robin flinched at his words, knowing deep down that they were true. Band was the only juvenile element left in their lives, aside from school," Don't get me wrong; I love you and our children, but once band is gone, what am I?"

The white haired girl tightened her hold on his arm and tucked her head on his shoulder," Chrom, don't think that we're going to hold you back from what you want to do. You're still in basketball, remember? You still have your entire life ahead of you, and we'll be there for you when you're ready."

"What about you?"

Robin felt her gaze trail down onto the ground," I don't know what I want to do with my life, Chrom. What can I do? I hardly know myself, how am I supposed to pick what I'm going to do for the rest of my life?"

Chrom didn't answer for a few minutes, letting her words sink in," If it makes you feel any better, I don't know what I'm doing with my life either. All I know is that I want you to be in it."

The white haired girl was so surprised by his last comment that she yanked herself away in order to be able to look him in the eye. When she saw the amount of genuine affection in them, she couldn't keep herself from blushing," Really?"

"Yeah, really!" A smirk found its way back onto his lips," You act like you're surprised."

"You've only known me for three months," Robin couldn't help but giggle," Of course I'm surprised."

The boy nuzzled his nose into her hair and laughed," You shouldn't be. I love you, remember?"

Her blush intensified," Chrom, we're in public. We need to upkeep a professional air if people are going to respect ourselves and our band."

He rolled his eyes," Why do you always have to be right? Come on, let's get the band together and prepare for tonight," The blue haired boy got to his feet and offered her his hand, pulling her up beside him.

"Hey Chrom?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you too, you know that right?"

His heart warmed at the soft words from his girlfriend," Right. How could I ever forget?"

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Little did they know, but Chrom and Robin weren't alone during their conversation. A boy with blaring red hair tried to ignore the unease churning inside of him as he looked at his brother. While the two were twins, they were in no way fraternal; His brother was slightly taller and sported jet black hair with a darker demeanor. It didn't help that he had murder on his mind," Nate, I don't think that we should do this."

The dark haired boy, Nate, rolled his eyes from his spot spying on the couple underneath the bleachers," It's the perfect opportunity that we've been waiting for."

"Mom wouldn't want this-"

"She's the reason mom is dead," His brother spat venomously," I don't care who she was before or if mom wouldn't approve. It's better this way, Anders."

The redhead, Anders, frowned deeply," But what about-"

"Would you rather have her or mom dead?" When his brother didn't answer, he carried on," I've made up my mind. There's no point in trying to change it," Nate's eyes flickered back to the bleachers where his victim had been waiting, only to find the spot empty," Shit, she left. Come on, we have to keep on her trail."

Despite the fact that he wanted nothing to do with this, Anders couldn't leave his brother to face this feat alone. He ignored the small voice in his head that said he couldn't stop him and persisted in his protests," I'm not going to let you go through with this. There is no justification in murder."

"You've killed people before," His brother grumbled in annoyance," Where's your justification for that?"

"I was protecting people-"

"So am I!" Nate desperately tried to convince his twin," I know that you're hesitant, and I don't like the idea of homicide any more than you do, but if we want to save everyone that lost their lives protecting her, we need to act now!"

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Olivia felt as if she was forgetting something really important when she walked into the hospital with Lon'qu that morning. She was happy to be going in for her routinely visit with Basilio and Inigo, but there was a voice in the back of her head that kept nagging her," Hey Lon'qu?"

The brunette pulled his attention from the receptionist to his friend and rose his eyebrow," What is it?"

"Was there something we were supposed to do today?" The dancer blushed at the idea that she might just be imagining things and tried to justify herself," I know it sounds silly, but-"

"No, you're right," Lon'qu interrupted. He searched his own brain for the solution to their quandary, eventually turning back to the receptionist," What is the date, woman?"

The receptionist blinked in surprise and quickly checked her calendar," November 20th-"

"It's States today!" Olivia squeaked in horror," I completely forgot!"

Lon'qu cursed under his breath," I guess we don't have time for a visit today. Come on, we need to leave as soon as possible if we want to get there in time," The two nodded in agreement and zoomed out of the hospital.

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"Hey, Uncle Ricken?" The boy turned around from his spot practicing his clarinet and looked up at Novak, who was holding a color guard flag cheerfully," Do you know where Anna went? I want to run the routines by her to make sure I'm doing them right."

"I think she said something about looking for Robin," Ricken replied," As to where she is, I'm not sure. Just wander around a bit, I'm sure you'll run into someone who knows where she is."

Novak grinned thankfully," Alright, I'll keep an eye out. Thanks, Uncle Ricken!"

"U-Uncle?"

Ricken felt his heart drop into his stomach when Dimitri's voice pierced through the air. He had completely forgotten that the very reason Dimitri had come to visit was to see him go to State," Dimitri, there's no easy way to explain-"

"Wait, _you're_ my dad?" Novak lit up like a Christmas tree, completely oblivious to Dimitri's frazzled state," Mom wasn't kidding when she said I looked like you! We're almost identical!"

The fourteen year old grimaced and tried to keep his nephew from continuing on," Novak, you shouldn't-"

The teenage tried to finish his sentence," I know, I know. I should give him some space. Having your child come back from the future must be crazy."

"...No."

Novak furrowed his eyebrows at Dimitri, who looked like he was going to puke," Dad, is something wrong?"

"Don't call me dad."

Ricken winced alongside his nephew," Dimitri-"

The older boy turned to his younger brother and shook his head," I can't handle this. Not right now. I can't be a dad to two children, I can hardly handle the possibility of one!"

Novak felt all the dread he had collected throughout the week pile back up inside of him as he watched his father back away from him in fear," Dad, please-"

"Don't call me dad!" The seventeen year old flinched, but unfortunately, his father wasn't done yet," How are you here? How do you know who I am? How do you know who Ruby is? Neither of our families would ever dream of letting us keep you! We can't keep you! I can't be a dad! Not to you, not to the child Ruby's carrying, not to anyone! I just...can't."

Novak looked as if he had been punched in the gut. The two brothers could only watch helplessly as he tried desperately to hide how heartbroken he was. Although his eyes clearly showed the pain he was experiencing, Novak placed on a facade and pressed his lips into a thin line," O-Oh. That's okay," He non-subtly rubbed his nose and attempted to place on a genuine smile, only to have it come across as pained," I'll stay out of your way. I know how hard life can be, and adding stress isn't going to fix anything. Just...I know that people can still get abortions in this time period, and I'm not really sure how far into pregnancy mom is...," For a few brief seconds, he let his walls fall and revealed just how scared he was," Please don't abort future me. Give him a chance, even if that just means letting him live," Novak straightened up, and with what little dignity he had, he stated," Goodbye father. Even if you don't want me, I'm glad I got the chance to meet you."

For some reason, watching Novak leave hurt Ricken nearly as much as it would have hurt him if it was Nah leaving. It was a brutal blow to watch someone so young and naive get kicked when he was already down. The fourteen year old bit his lip and prepared to go after him when his older brother rasped," We want to keep him."

The auburn haired boy paused and turned to face Dimitri, only to find that his brother wasn't fairing much better than his child was; the older boy had collapsed onto a nearby bench and had his face buried in his hands," What?"

"I dropped my college classes," Ricken's eyes widened in shock at the revelation and he slowly sank down to sit next to his brother as he continued," I came here to find a stable job so that we can afford an apartment and raise him in the most normal life we can manage."

The younger sibling frowned," What about your girlfri-I mean, wife?"

Dimitri's face filled with a look of horror," I can't tell Ruby about any of this! Do you have any idea how guilty she'd be? She'd try and drop her full ride scholarship to help me out! She already has to carry the baby and get morning sickness and-Oh gods, Ricken, I couldn't ask her to give up her dreams," He ran his hand through his hair," She deserves more than she has, and I'm going to work hard to make sure she has it."

"Oh Dimitri, I think I understand now," Judging by the look of panic on his brother's face, Ricken knew exactly who had spoken up. He turned to find a young woman standing behind them bearing the most understanding smile that he had ever seen.

The brunette desperately tried backtracking," Ruby, I-"

"Wait, so this is Ruby?" Ricken carefully observed the girl, surprised to find out that she was even shorter than he was. Despite that fact, she held a natural beauty that gave her a lovely glow. Her brown eyes seemed like they could melt the hearts of anyone that looked at her, and her somewhat messy dark blonde hair was coaxed into a sloppy ponytail on the back of her head. She seemed tired, but didn't want to show it.

When she noticed that she was being inspected, she cleared her throat nervously and gave him a sheepish smile," H-Hi. Are you Ricken?"

"Mhm," The fourteen year old looked between the two, deciding that they probably needed some alone time," I'm going to go find Novak and make sure he's okay."

Dimitri's head whipped up so fast that it startled his wife," No wait! Ricken don't...," He watched helplessly as his younger brother trailed after his son and grimaced,"...leave. Shit," The twenty three year old quickly focused his gaze back on the ground to avoid in inevitable disappointed look his wife was probably giving him," How much do you know?"

"I know that you dropped your classes two weeks ago and left without telling anyone where you were going," Ruby fiddled worriedly with her hands and placed on the very same forced smile that his son had just given him," I understand if you don't want to stick by me-"

"Ruby, don't say things like that!" He pleaded desperately," You know that I'd never do that."

Her smile faded, replaced by an expression that could only be described as immensely relieved," I know that now. Why couldn't you just tell me the truth? We're...married now, aren't we?" The word seemed foreign coming out of her mouth, but she reaffirmed it," We need to trust each other."

"I know, but I needed to keep this from you," He shuffled, never pulling his gaze from the ground," I can't stand by while you go through the hardships that come with carrying the baby. I knew that if you found out I was trying to find a job, you'd drop your classes and do the same."

She coaxed herself onto the seat next to him," You don't need to find a job yet-"

"What do you suggest we do if I don't?" Dimitri finally pulled his eyes from the grass and looked at her dead in the eye," We can't keep him if I don't."

The blonde too his hand in hers and smiled supportively," We'll find something out together, but you deserve your dream just as much as I deserve mine," When he didn't look convinced, Ruby continued on," Look at where we are right now; there's so much and so little we can do, but I know that we can do it if we put our minds to it."

"You can't drop college to work," He protested weakly," Who will raise our son if you do? How will he turn out?"

She hummed," I already know that he'll be just like you; hardworking, kind, and so intelligent. We'll make sure he knows we love him, and when we've got our lives figured out, we'll be able to spend time together as a family," She nudged him playfully," And how do you know that our child will be a boy, hmm?"

Dimitri laughed weakly," Lucky guess?" He softened at the determined glint in his wife's eyes, wanting so badly to believe that she was right. There was nothing he wanted more than to leave all of the stress that they had to face already behind and build a happy family consisting of the three of them," I'm not going to stop looking for a job, but I promise I won't keep any secrets from you anymore."

A glimmer of worry flashed in her features," Promise not to overwork yourself either. I don't want your health to decline because of me."

He gently kissed her cheek," I promise."

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Robin brightened immensely when she saw Lon'qu enter the building with Olivia. She dropped everything she was doing and raced forward to hug her socially awkward friend while Olivia wandered off to find Panne," Lon'qu! I thought that you weren't going to come!"

The gynophobe tried to push his friend away, but soon it became obvious that she wasn't going to let go any time soon," I apologize for being late."

The white haired girl rolled her eyes and hugged him even tighter," I'm glad you're here."

"I am as well," He shifted uncomfortably,"...Can you let me go now?"

His friend widened her eyes and backed away bashfully," Sorry. I just figured that you were over your fear of the opposite gender."

"What would make you think that?"

Robin furrowed her eyebrow," Haven't you noticed how much more relaxed you've been?"

Relaxed? Was she kidding? All he ever worried about was her and Olivia (although Inigo had somehow found his way onto his radar). If something was to ever happen to either of them, he would never forgive himself. When he noticed the concerned look on the white haired girl's face, he cleared his throat and flicked his gaze to the side," What are you talking about?

"I'm talking about how I stand close to you, and you don't even break a sweat," She frowned," What do you think I was referring to? Is something bothering you?"

Lon'qu shook his head, knowing that his friend had just as much on her plate as he had on his. If he shared his worries, it would only cause her more stress," Nothing that wasn't there before," She crossed his arms and opened her mouth to press the subject, but he beat her to it," I don't ask you about your matters."

"Sure you do," A nostalgic look flashed in her eyes," Don't you remember? You were the one that told me to go after Chrom and keep him from leaving town. That was when we first started to become friends."

"...You see me as a friend?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Robin gently laid a hand on his shoulder," Are you sure you're okay? I heard about what happened with Walhart," This time, she was the one to become downcast," I should have been the one to face him, not you. I can't even imagine having that weight on-"

"I have a son."

"-your shoulders-wait, what?!" Robin grabbed Lon'qu by his shoulder and led him to sit down," Do you know who the mother is?"

He kept his face as blank as possible when he responded," I was listening to their conversation, and the boy said that his mother was Olivia," He ran his hand through his hair," His name is Inigo, and he risked his life to save ours-"

"Wait, did you say Inigo?" Robin bit her lip to keep herself from breaking into a huge grin. Not only did this mean that Lon'qu liked Olivia, but it also meant that their son might have a relationship with her child," I've met him before. He seems to be very close with my daughter."

Lon'qu rose his eyebrow at her comment before muttering," Everyone seems to know him. First Chrom speaks up about him, then Walhart wants to murder him and the girl, and now you know who he is? That boy seems to know his way around."

"Heh, so does Lucina. People usually introduce themselves with their relation to her," Robin blinked," Do you think that that means anything?"

"We'll find out when we return home."

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Lucina anxiously fiddled with her trumpet as she waited to march onto the field. The band currently performing was extremely good, and while the Shepherds did gain more members, she didn't know if they'd have a fair chance.

"Hey, Luci!" The blue haired girl blinked at the familiarity of the voice and turned to find it, only to find Novak. She couldn't help but let out the elated laugh as she launched herself at the boy, pulling him into a tight hug. He had been her best friend in their future, and she usually found herself drawn to him in times where she needed to be consoled," I've been trying to find you all day."

The girl pulled away when she noticed the dullness of her friend's voice and gently touched his cheek, surprised to find his bright blue eyes a pale shade of gray," Novak, what's wrong?"

He tried to reassure her concerns and forced a small smile," Uh, it's nothing really. I was just wondering...everyone's parents have accepted them, right?" When he saw his friend's face pale, he tried to direct the conversation somewhere else," Are you nervous? I'm pretty freaked out, it's my first time performing and I just learned the routine-"

"What happened, Novak?" Lucina asked seriously," Did your parents-"

"Everyone, get into places!" Her dad directed, unknowingly cutting off his daughter's conversation," We're on next!"

Novak sent Lucina one last smile before cowering back to the other color guard members, leaving her to ponder what happened to her friend. As soon as he was out of sight, Cynthia approached the blue haired girl," Do you think his parents didn't accept him?"

"I have a bad feeling that they didn't," Lucina scowled," This wasn't supposed to happen. I should have found them and explained it first or-"

"You can't blame yourself for this, Luci," The usually bubbly girl suddenly turned solemn," Things don't turn out right when you do."

While she wanted to continue the conversation, her mother clapped her hands and commanded," Ben ten, hut!"

"HUT!" The band repeated, immediately bringing their instruments up and preparing to march.

Robin and Chrom nodded at each other and started conducting the marching tempo," Mark-time move!"

"Together, together, heel, heel," The band replied, making sure to go through the motions before marching into the field. Robin felt her stomach bubble with butterflies when she noticed the amount of people watching them, but knowing that this wasn't her first time anymore, she felt ready. This is what they had been preparing for for a month, and nothing was going to get in their way.

The band marched onto their spots on the field as the announcer introduced them," _Everyone, Welcome Ylisse High School's Marching Shepherds! Today, the band will be starting off with "ID Hope", shortly followed by "You Deserved More From Me Than One Sword and a World of Troubles, then they will finish it off with "ID Return" and "ID Purpose". Today's soloists will be Cherche Wyvern on the French Horn, Cordelia Crimson on the Cornet, and Lissa Exalt on the flute. The band will be lead by their Drum Majors, Chrom Exalt and Robin Doe, and their color guard captain, Olivia Plush. Drum Majors, is the band ready?"_ The two nodded," _Alright, Marching Shepherds, take the field!"_

The couple marched onto their podiums, and much like earlier, shared a look to tell when to conduct on time with each other. This time, though, Chrom gave her a smile that melted her heart and made all of her worries vanish. This was their last time conducting, and there was no way they'd let the band down. She returned the gesture before nodding and setting a tempo. The two started conducting for 2/2 time. Chrom crisply blew his whistle three times before the band was set off into motion.

The Shepherds' hard work clearly showed off, because every step and beat was in line with each other. Everyone's musicality flowed perfectly, soothing the ears of the audience and obviously pleasing the judges. Despite the fact that the Olivia had just expirienced one of the toughest weeks of her life and Novak had just learned the drill, the colorguard was practically perfect. If that wasn't good enough, the solos blew everyone out of the water with how spectacular they were.

Unfortunately, their performance was over just as soon as it started, leaving everyone in an odd state of awe. Robin tried not to tear up and she and Chrom guided the band off the field, but she let a few tears slip once the band had returned to their spots. Her boyfriend smiled empathetically and kissed her forehead before wrapping her into a tight hug. Those who were seniors acted in a similar way; Sumia started uncontrollably bawling as soon as she set down her instrument and let herself be consoled by Cordelia, who was trying (and failing) to keep herself from crying too. Gaius hastily wiped one of his eyes and stuck by his daughter, who was gushing about how fun marching band was. Lon'qu had to hold Olivia as she shook, distraught that this was her last performance as the colorguard captain. Nowi was desperately clinging to Ricken and sobbing while her boyfriend helplessly patted her head in a vain attempt to comfort her. Hewitt wasn't incredibly distraught, but he found comfort in holding Anna's hand as she chatted nervously about becoming the captain next year. Sully, Virion, and Vaike eagerly boasted about how that was the best performance of the night and how they expected to win the state title. Kellam and Stahl high-fived while Cherche congratulated Panne and Libra on their stellar performance.

Unfortunately, they had to wait another hour before they could hear the results. Many of the band students used this time to either chat, watch other bands perform, or play another rousing game of truth or dare. Ricken, however, was set on a mission and determined to succeed. He made sure that the somewhat unstable Nowi was being comforted by Cherche before he started to look for his nephew. After wandering for a few minutes, he found Novak sitting with his back against a storage unit watching the other bands perform," Hey, can I sit here?"

Novak didn't seem to notice his uncle walk in, and his jaw dropped for a full five seconds before he snapped it shut," Y-Yeah, if you want to."

The auburn haired boy grinned and settled himself next to his nephew, deciding to skip to what the older boy would want to hear," I want you to stay with Nah and I. My parents are under the impression that Nah's parents abandoned her, and if you say that you're a foreign exchange student, I'm positive they'd let you stay with us."

The seventeen year old blinked in shock, letting his uncle's words sink in fully," W-Why? I thought that I was too much trouble to look after, and I know that you're younger than me in this time-"

"Novak, you deserve to have someone look after you just as much as the other kids do."

The brunette smiled bittersweetly and let his gaze wander," I don't know if I do. You see, my mom stayed alive the longest out of everyone. In fact, she was the one that made the time machine. She was a brilliant woman, but...when we were leaving, there was a surprise attack. She said that she'd hold them off for as long as she could, but...," Novak hastily wiped his eyes and tried to stay as optimistic as possible," She sacrificed herself for me, just like I thought my dad did...just like the other parents did...just like I'm going to do."

Ricken's eyes nearly popped out of his head," Wait, what did you just say?!"

"All of the children came back to save their parents," Novak replied quickly," We'd all give our lives for yours in a second. It doesn't matter what happens to us, it only matters that you guys live and get the happy ending you deserve."

"You deserve happiness as much as anyone else does," The clarinet player affirmed," Now come on, you come back to the band. I'm sure that some people are worried about you."

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Robin had wandered away from the group to calm herself down and let everything sink in. They had just marched in front of a large group of people, and they loved it! As fun as the event had been, it proved to be mostly bittersweet. Seeing everyone cry happy tears had tugged drastically at her heartstrings, and while being comforted by her friends was nice, she needed some alone time.

Just as her heart had calmed down, someone slapped their hand over her mouth and wrapped their arm around her waist. She let out a muffled scream, but when the person's grip tightened, she decided that struggling would be futile until she had the upper hand," Don't make a noise, or my brother will find you. He thinks you're with the others, and as soon as he notices you're gone-"

Before he could finish, Robin nudged the boy's stomach and yanked herself away. Despite the darkness, the bright red shade of his hair stuck out to her," What do you want with me? Do you work for Walhart?"

"What? Of course not!" He rubbed his new bruise gingerly," I'm trying to keep him from killing you!"

The white haired girl felt her stomach drop," Who?"

"Me."

* * *

**Heh, I guess Robin can't catch a break! As soon as Walhart is off her back, Nate is on the case. Speaking of which, who are Anders and Nate? Are they Grimleal? Who is responsible for their mother's death? Anyways, Robin and Chrom got a cute little moment at the beginning because I thought it'd be nice to start with some nostalgia. Olivia and Lon'qu ended up coming to participate in State, but obvious neither Cobalt or Tanith could. Lots of information on Novak and Dimitri's story and their relationship. As I said later in the chapter, Ruby actually is the parent that stays alive the longest (she's also incredibly smart, as I've hinted several times in this chapter). Robin and Lon'qu had a cute friendship talk and briefly discussed their children's (possible) relationship (Robin totally ships them). Lucina and Novak are buddies, and for future reference, Inigo is extremely jealous of Novak. They performed well at State (I got to add some marching commands in there)! Ricken stepped up and took responsibility for Novak (which is crazy because Ricken in only fourteen). Finally, we left off with a cliffhanger! Ahh! Review time!**

**crowsandclouds:**** Thank you for understanding! I felt really bad about not being able to post that weekend, so it's good to hear that some people are okay with the brief Hiatus. Most of the holes got filled, with Cobalt being the only one that wouldn't have a replacement (Novak went in for Tanith). Oops, I messed up their names! There are so many characters to keep track of, and I'm pretty sure that that's not the first time it's happened to me. Yes, Chrobin is meant to be together forever and ever, and no one can tell me otherwise (honestly, I don't like the other girl units with him that much. SumiaxChrom is okay, OliviaxChrom is cute, but rushed, and I've never done SullyxChrom. I like the idea of him with the maiden (i won't do it though, because Lucina doesn't get good stats) and surprisingly, Say'ri. I think it'd be cool if they were able to get together, but that might just be me). Yup, Henry is the boy in the story! I felt bad about how messed up his past is, but there had to be an explanation for his slight insanity. Thank you for reviewing!**

**potatoman098:**** They are not related in this story, but the people that killed Henry's sister also tried (succeeded? no one knows) to kill Robin's mother. I'm sorry for the slight confusion! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Okay, so obviously the next chapter will pick up where this one left off. Now that all the OCs are here, which ones are your favorites? Which ones are you excited to learn more about? What will happen in the final arc? There is so much more coming, and it's going to be just as climatic and intense as the last arc! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you next weekend!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	41. Chapter 41 Unpredictable

**Hey guys! Sorry for posting so late in the weekend. It's been another long weekend, but the important thing is that I'm posting this now! Okay, I don't have much to say in the beginning other than a recap from where we left off; Anders (Redhead) and Nate (Dark haired) had Robin at gunpoint when she got separated from the others. Anders doesn't want her to die, but Nate thinks it is the only way to save his dead mother. Alright, enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Robin's eyes flickered from the dark haired boy's face to his gun, analyzing the situation quickly. She held her hands up, remaining as calm as possible in the face of danger," Okay, so I'm guessing you want to kill me. Any reason why?"

"You're responsible for my mother's death," He spat," In order to keep her alive, you need to die."

His brother acted fast and raced in between the two," Hold on! I know you're set on killing her, but there are so many more factors to consider!"

Robin felt a twinge of relief when the dark haired boy hesitated," Like what?"

The redhead fumbled for an answer that would appease his sibling," She was friends with our parents before they died. The only reason she's responsible for their death is because they fought to protect her, you know that! Would you dishonor their wishes?"

"Their wishes?" He laughed bitterly," Maybe dad was willing to die for her, but mom had no reason to," His finger silently slipped to a resting place above the trigger," If that's all you have to say-"

"Lucina!" The redhead desperately burst," If you kill Robin, there will be no Lucina or Morgan. You won't only be responsible for her death, but theirs too! You'd destroy their future! Are you willing to do that?"

Once again, his brother faltered. His eyes flickered in between his victim and his conscious, but before he could make his decision, someone slammed their instrument case against the back of his head and knocked him out. Robin felt herself fill with relief when she saw Hewitt make sure the boy was unconscious before stepping in front of his sister," You okay?"

"I'm fine," She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder when she noticed his hesitancy towards the red headed boy," Don't worry, Hewitt, I don't think he wants to hurt anybody."

"Hewitt?" The boy's face went blank for a few seconds until he processed the information and burst out laughing," Oh gods, this is too good!"

Her brother narrowed his eyes and turned to Robin," Go back to the others. I'll deal with these two."

"Don't do anything you'll regret-"

"I won't. Now go," She still seemed hesitant, but followed her brother's orders. Once she was safely out of sight, he moved his focus back onto the giggling redhead," Explain yourself."

"You just-haha-knocked out-haha-your own-hahaha-son!" He wheezed," We're your kids!"

Hewitt nearly dropped his instrument case, frantically looking between the two boys," Wait, did you say we?!"

The redhead nodded, chuckling as he held out his hand," My name is Anders, and the one you knocked out is my twin brother, Nate. We already know who you are, of course."

His father warily shook the boy's hand and sent another glance to his unconscious son," If you two are my children, why did you try to kill Robin? Wouldn't that make her your aunt?"

Anders frowned and scratched the back of his head," It's...complicated. Don't take it too personally, though. Nate is a huge downer, but I think that's because he has a lot of emotional baggage."

"That's not an excuse for murder-"

"I know that," Anders wearily crossed his arms," But he kept going on about how it was Aunt Robin's fault that mom died, and...," He sighed," Grief can make a person do terrible things."

Hewitt paled, automatically knowing what his son was referencing to," You mean they get her in the future?" The redhead only nodded quietly, causing dad to curse under his breath," Gods Dammit. Are you saying that she's responsible for the destruction in the future?"

He bit his lip and tried to find an easier way of putting it," Technically it isn't Robin who wanted to destroy everyone's lives," When he saw the disdain on his father's face, he attempted saying something else," Now that we know what's going to happen, we can stop it-"

"Who is we?" Hewitt crossed his arms," How many people know about her?"

"Just us," The two turned to find Nate, who was slowly regaining his bearings," We couldn't have everyone placing the blame on her or her kids. It'd put the family in too much danger."

His father clenched his jaw," Yet you try to kill her."

"I was only doing what I thought was best," Nate growled.

"Who the hell told you that it was okay to kill people?!"

"Seeing that you abandoned us before you could teach us anything, I'd say it as the army that I had to join in order to protect the younger kids."

The pair stared daggers at each other, neither willing to budge from their stances. Anders knew that his mom could be pretty stubborn at times, but it was pretty evident that Nate had inherited his hard-headedness from his dad. When it became evident that no one was going to back off of their position, Anders intervened," Fighting with each other won't solve anything. We need to get along if we're going to prevent the Grimleal from controlling Aunt Robin again," The two held onto their glares for a few moments before mutually backing off," Good. We're getting somewhere. Now, how about we find mom and tell her who we are? I assume that you two are dating at this point...right?"

The thought of the twins having a mother didn't hit him until that point, and once it did, everything became ten times clearer; Anna was their mother. The twin gene had obviously been passed down, but this time, with boys instead of girls. That also explained Anders's fire red hair and persuasion skills. He cleared his throat and blushed at the thought of marrying Anna," Y-Yeah, we're dating."

"Good! Let's not waste another moment, then!" Anders took the lead and marched towards the rest of the group. Hewitt glanced over at Nate, who gave him a harsh glare before following his brother. The father waited until both were almost out of sight to pocket his son's gun and follow after them.

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Kjelle was the only new future child that decided right away that she would learn both the music and the drill alongside Novak to aid them in State Championships. When they asked Laurent if he wanted to join along, he waved them off and politely reminded them that he was twenty years old. Yarne, however, squeaked in fear when asked and scampered off in the other direction.

Before she could ponder the boy's reasons for running off, someone ran headfirst into her," Gah! Kjelle, I didn't expect to run into you here!"

She recognized Yarne's voice immediately and spun around, clamping a hand on his shoulder to keep him from running away," Is that a problem?"

The teenager's eyes widened in horror when he realized there was no escape," What? N-no! Of course not, I just..."

"Worried I heard you ran from responsibility again like a cowardly dastard?" When he rose his eyebrow curiously, she clarified,"...Because I have."

Yarne blinked in confusion," What? I don't remember doing that recently..."

She tightened her grip on his shoulder," Sure, play dumb! See where that'll get you."

"I'm not playing anything!" He protested nervously," When I'm in the middle of a stressful situation, I kind of panic. My chest tightens and I can't breath...," His face suddenly became ridden with worry," L-L-Like now...Gotta go-"

Yarne tried to make a break for it, but Kjelle's steel-like grasp on him kept him firmly in place," Isn't that convenient?" She spat," Instead of facing your problems, you run from them!"

"No, I'm just...This isn't..."

"Uh huh. And you can't so much as hold up a conversation with another person," She let her statement sink into him before finally releasing her grip, giving him a look that challenged him to stay," I'd love to see you live a day in my life. I bet you couldn't take a single step."

Yarne looked her up and down and bit his lip," We can't actually change bodies, can we?"

"...What?"

"Don't give me that look!" He defended himself weakly," I mean, look at you! You're so brave and strong...I'd give anything to live like you do!" An idea popped in his head, lighting up his eyes," Hey, why don't you tell me how you deal with your worries! You don't seem to let them bother you at all!"

Kjelle rose her eyebrow before crossing her arms thoughtfully," It would make you braver...," Wait, what was she thinking? This was Yarne they were talking about! He would run away from his own shadow if he had the chance,"...Forget it. If I had the free time to spend babysitting you, I'd spend it training."

She had expected him to cower away from her brash tone, but much to her shock, he only became more determined,"Aww, come on! Please? You're the one who brought it up in the first place."

"Yes, but...," As much as she hated to admit it, he had a point. There wasn't a downside to the situation; either Yarne would become less cowardly or he would act like he normally did," Ugh, fine."

Yarne gaped at her before fist pumping the air," I can?! Yesss!"

"I'll come by later, and we can't chat about how far you're willing to go."

He seemed a little fazed by her comment, but his determination shone through," Thanks, Kjelle!"

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Anna was waiting with Olivia to get their score when Hewitt approached her, tilting his head towards the back of the room. She rose her eyebrow in confusion but decided to follow him outside anyways," What's up?"

"Wow! Mom, you look so young!" Anna's felt a flurry of butterflies fill her stomach when she turned to find a pair of boys looking at her," You look good," The redhead one reaffirmed before his face turned a bright shade of pink," Not that I'm attracted to you or anything! You're my mom! That would be incest."

The dark haired one rolled his eyes," Nice first impression, Anders."

Anna swallowed the lump in her throat and stuttered," Y-You called me mom."

"That's because you are our mom," The serious child sent her a unenthusiastic smile," Surprise!"

"Don't be an ass, Nate," Anders grumbled," We need to make sure they like us."

"What does it matter if they do or not? We're going to have to leave eventually so that they can live their lives."

"It matters because we're a family now!"

"Sure we are-"

Hewitt rubbed his temples in annoyance, mentally cursing his future self for having children," Stop arguing, you're stressing your mother out."

Anders rubbed his arm sheepishly and apologized while Nate stared his mother down defiantly," Sorry for being such a burden to you."

While hearing them argue kept Anna in a state of shock, hearing her son sass her somehow drew the line," Who said you could talk to me like that? I'm your mother!"

Nate's tough exterior suddenly broke, revealing a somewhat vulnerable version of himself," Sorry, mother," As soon as it showed up, his softer side disappeared," If you want me to treat you with respect, I should expect the same from you."

His brother slapped the dark haired boy upside the head," Why do you have to act like this?"

"I can't get attached," He grumbled in annoyance, rubbing the new bruise on the back of his head," You should be acting the same way."

"Mhm...," This time, Anders rolled his eyes. He turned back to his parents and smiled apologetically," He means well. He's just...reclusive..."

Anna nodded sadly, desperately wanting to know why her son was so enclosed. Maybe it was the same part of her that wanted to know Hewitt better when he was almost completely silent. Maybe it was her obligation to being the boy's mother. Maybe it was that she wanted to be a better parent than hers were. She bit her lip before opening her mouth to say something, only to have herself cut off by the sight of Nate leaving the group," What happened to him?"

Anders rubbed his neck," Ah...that's probably something he'll have to tell you. I'm going to go after him and make sure he's okay."

The couple watched their other son leave as well, both unsure of what to do. While Hewitt had an internal monologue with himself going, Anna was very vocal about her thoughts," So these are our children? I expected them to be more like us...and girls," She ran her hand through her hair," It was almost like they didn't want us to meet them. Did the future versions of ourselves do something unforgivable?" Hewitt shrugged unsurely, causing his girlfriend to pout," This is one of those moments where you should assure me that everything is going to be fine."

He stared at her for a few seconds before letting his actions speak instead of his words; he gently wrapped his girlfriend in and a warm hug and tucked his chin on her shoulder. Anna felt her eyes gloss over with worry as she tightened the embrace. Was she a horrible mother like hers were? She squeezed her eyes shut and huffed, desperately trying to keep herself from crying.

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"Hey, Champ!" The brunette blinked in surprise and turned to find Priam strutting towards her with a somewhat cocky grin on his face," I didn't know that you played the flute. You seem a bit old."

She cringed, thinking back to how she begged her dad to let her play with the band. No one had questioned it up until this point," Y-You won't tell anyone, r-right?"

"Of course not," He winked," Just let me play next time, too. I used to be a damn good trumpet player."

"Damn good, huh?" Priam's entire body stiffened when the man's voice pierced through the air," If you're so good, why didn't you get into the Ylisse Orchestra?"

"It's because I didn't want to be in the Orchestra, Farber," He gritted through his teeth. Noire peeked around the blue haired boy to find a built, blonde male about his age," What the hell are you doing here anyways?"

Farber smirked," Carrion Isle Academy got a perfect score at Districts, so it was only natural that we'd win State Championships as well. I figured I'd come along and watch my old school kick Ylisse High's ass."

"It's too bad that's not going to happen," Priam crossed his arms," Now, did you come here to talk, or do you just want to annoy the crap out of me?"

"Neither," His eyes trailed off so that they were on Noire," I came to talk to your beautiful lady friend."

"That's cute," The blue haired man said, his voice dripping with sarcasm," Unfortunately, she's way out of your league."

Noire blushed slightly at the comment, but felt her body grow cold when Farber observed her almost wolfishly," If she hangs around with you, I definitely have a chance," He pushed Priam to the side and wrapped his arm around the nineteen year old," Hey, baby, you wanna go somewhere we can be alone?"

She shook her head and yanked herself away from him," D-Don't touch m-me."

Farber tutted and reached forward," Aww, come on baby-"

Noire acted immediately by sending her fist into his eye, causing the creeper to stumble backwards in shock. She waved her fist a bit to soothe the pain prickling in her knuckles and repeated herself firmly," Don't touch me, don't call me baby, and leave me alone."

The blonde looked in between the two with a trace of fear in his eyes before flipping off Noire," Don't worry, bitch! I don't play with whores like you!" He flinched when Noire took a threatening step towards him and sped away, leaving the pair in his dust.

"Gods, you are so hot."

Noire blinked in surprise and turned back to Priam, whose jaw was hanging wide open," W-What did y-you say?"

When he realized she had heard what he just said, he clamped his jaw shut and turned a bright shade of pink," I said that...it is hot...for November," Priam coughed awkwardly," Yeah. That's what I said."

"Okay..."

The blue haired boy regained is composure and started gushing over her," You didn't hesitate giving that douche what he deserved! You just went for it! He probably had a black eye now! And the firmness in your voice when you told him to fuck off was pretty freaking scary! I'd hate to be your enemy."

"He deserved it," She titled her head," Why was he so mean in the first place? Do you two know each other?"

Priam deflated slightly and rubbed the back of his neck," Yeah, we do. I beat him out for honors band on year and he's been jealous of me ever since. He usually brings up how inferior I am compared to him or my grandfather."

The brunette furrowed her eyebrows," Who is your grandfather?"

The boy laughed at first, but when he saw just how confused she was, his jaw dropped again," You really don't know who Ike Dawn is? He was the man who took down an entire terrorist group in Tellius by himself! He appeased a war between two gangs! He has a statue dedicated in his honor in the middle of the city! Little boys grow up wanting to be like him!"

"That's...something to live up to."

Priam smiled bitterly," Now it all makes sense; you don't treat me like a legend because you don't know who I really am."

Noire shyly took his hand in hers," Actually, I-I'm getting the f-feeling I'm the o-only one who knows who y-you really are," She squeezed his hand lightly," You're not your grandfather."

"Don't you think I know that?" He pulled his hand away, although he looked like he regretted it the minute he did so," Everyone else wants me to be him, and because of that peer pressure, even I'm not sure who I am!"

Something about his defeated aura struck a nerve inside of Noire," WHAT ARE YOU, AN IDIOT?!"

Priam blinked, obviously caught of guard by her outburst," W-What?"

"YOU ARE A COCKY ASSHOLE WHO SHOULDN'T LET PEOPLE'S EXPECTATIONS OF YOU CONTROL YOUR LIFE!" She grabbed his collar and dragged him down so that he was down to her height," SERIOUSLY, HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE?!"

Priam thought that he had figured out Noire, but she never ceased to amaze him. Something about her kicking ass and putting him in his place was extremely attractive. He swallowed, watching her face turn from furious to horrified," Champ? You okay?"

She automatically released him and stumbled backwards a few steps, terrified with what she had just done," I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean-I mean-" She bit her lip as her eyes glossed over," I-I need to go."

"Wait, Noire!" He reached forward to catch her, but she slipped right out of his grasp and took off in the other direction, leaving him alone. What had just happened? Did she think he was mad at her? He cursed silently and dejectedly walked back to his seat, wanting nothing more than to have her hold his hand again.

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Ylisse's Marching band won the state title, but not everyone was willing to celebrate. Something was obviously bugging Anna and Hewitt, Lon'qu and Olivia were worried about their family back home, and Noire seemed especially dejected for some reason. Even Robin, who should have been jumping for joy, couldn't get the murder attempt from earlier out of her head. Nate had said that she was responsible for his mother's death. What did that mean? Was she part of the Grimleal cult in the future, or was it something worse?

Excluding the few that were bothered, everybody was immensely proud. The future children couldn't believe that they were part of such a substantial event in history, and they viewed it as a bright moment in an altogether dark time. Many of the seniors were bittersweet, seeing that it was a great way to end their high school experience, while the underclassmen we're excited for next year.

Dimitri smiled jealously at the celebrating band, desperately wishing to be a part of the Shepherds again. Growing up was tough, and watching people from your childhood celebrate something he could have had was somewhat hard.

"Dimitri, is that you?"

The college student felt his heart drop when he heard his mother's voice behind him. Shit. What was he thinking? Of course their parents would come to see Ricken march at the State Championships! Damn them for being so supportive! He forced on a smile and turned to embrace his parents," Hey guys!"

Mr. Mork patted his back cheerfully," It's good to see you, Buddy! It's been too long!"

"Why haven't you returned any of our calls?" His mother frowned worriedly," We didn't know if you were going to come home for Thanksgiving or Christmas."

"I...wouldn't miss Christmas," Dimitri laughed awkwardly," I'm sorry for making you guys concerned. I've just been busy."

His dad nodded," I see you're keeping busy with your classes, then. I'm proud of you for following in your old man's footsteps! Law school is a good choice."

"Yeah...I do love law," Their son clapped his hands together and tried to change the subject," Hey, maybe you should find Ricken and congratulate him. I bet he'd love that."

"But what about-"

"Hey Dimitri, the hotels around here are all booked solid," Said boy felt dread fill every essence of his body as his wife approached the trio," We could either take the cheap route and sleep in our cars or...," Ruby's voice trailed off when she saw his parents look at her questioningly," Oh dear. I think I was looking for someone else..."

Mr. Mork rose his eyebrow," Did you say Dimitri's name? Do you two know each other?" Realization filled his father's features, quickly followed by joy," Wait a minute; If you two are planning on sharing a hotel room together and if you came to support Ricken...You must be Dimitri's girlfriend!"

The couple exchanged nervous looks before Dimitri wrapped his arm around Ruby and chuckled," Yeah, we're dating. We just wanted to wait a little bit and officially introduce each other to you during the holidays."

"He's telling the truth," The blonde blurted, suddenly feeling nauseous for lying. If she told the truth, his parents would automatically hate her and shun their child, bunt lying only felt like putting off the inevitable. She swallowed her pride and held out her hand," My name is Ruby. It's nice to meet you."

Mr. Mork shook her hand happily," It's nice to meet you, Ruby! You're the first girl Dimitri has ever been serious about before."

"Our boy used to go out with girls a lot," Mrs. Mork confirmed. The blonde subtly rose her eyebrow at Dimitri, who shrugged apologetically," I'm just glad that the first person he brought home wasn't pregnant-"

"Mom!" Dimitri interrupted, trying to distract his parents from seeing his wife's breath hitch in panic," Shouldn't we talk about something else? I don't want you to overwhelm my...girlfriend."

Mr. Mork snapped his fingers," Hey, didn't you mention something about needing a place to stay? Why don't you just come home? It might be a tight squeeze, what with the boarder and the exchange student, but I believe-"

"Wait, since when did we except boarders?"

"Oh, I just know you'll love them!" Mrs. Mork smiled," Our boarder is a young girl named Nah who is very sweet and loves to help out around the house, and while we just met our exchange student, I'm sure you'll adore him too! What was his name again...Caleb?...Adam?"

Her husband patted her shoulder," Why don't we just get all three of them and introduce everyone? Don't move, you two! We'll be right back!"

Ruby waited until the pair were gone to break down," Did you hear what your mom said? She said that she was glad I wasn't pregnant!" She gripped his shoulders anxiously," I _am_ pregnant! What'll she do if she finds out?"

He hushed his wife comfortingly," Hey, it's only one night. We'll be extremely careful and leave early tomorrow."

She sniffled nervously," Why can't we just leave now?"

"They'd be suspicious," Dimitri cupped her cheek," Come on, it'll be okay. What's the worst that could happen?"

"We're back!" Mr. Mork declared, dragging three children behind him," Now, you already know Ricken, but you haven't met the other two. This young lady is Nah."

The brunette felt his insides churn at the sight of his niece," We've met before."

"Oh, how nice!" Mrs. Mork smiled obliviously," I bet you haven't met our exchange student. Novak, come here and meet our oldest son!"

As soon as he laid eyes on his son, he felt his stomach drop. No. No, no, no, no, no, no! Ruby couldn't see him! She'd freak out! What if his parents saw their similarities?! Dimitri felt like he was going to puke.

Novak, on the other hand, felt as if someone had sucked all the air out of him. He looked helplessly at Ricken, who mouthed _I had no idea_ back. How was he supposed to win his parents' affection if they weren't ready for him yet? His eyes flickered from Dimitri to Ruby...his mother. He couldn't keep himself from choking up at the sight of her again. Despite knowing that she'd be alive in this time, the reassurance of seeing her in person made him feel a thousand times better and worse at the same time," H-Hi."

That was the last thing Dimitri heard before promptly passing out.

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**Okay, so Anders and Nate are Anna and Hewitt's children (Are you guys ready for some clever naming? ANders and NAte. It spells Anna! BWAHAHA)! As you can already tell, Anders is an optimist while Nate is a pessimist. Despite their differences, though, they still get along...for the most part. We had a cute little fluff set up for Yarne and Kjelle, which was surprisingly fun to write! I'm looking forward to having more of them in the future! We got back to the parent+child reunion for Anders, Nate, and Anna, which was sad because it left Anna with the impression that she was a bad parent (a fear she briefly talked about before). Something happened in Nate's past, but no one (other than Anders, of course) knows what happened. Yay, Ylisse won State! I didn't spend too much time on their success because I felt it'd be pretty similar to their Districts celebration. Dimitri is setting himself up for failure now that A) his parents are insisting that he and his pregnant wife stay the night with them and B) their grown son and niece are going to be there. To make things worse, Ricken and Dimitri (and the children-ish) are the only two that know everything. Review time!  
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**Kit-Cat Star:**** Thank you, I'm glad you liked it! I'm happy that Lon'qu and Olivia got to participate too. I need to get back to Tanith and Cobalt in the next few chapters to check in on how they're doing...Did you expect Anders and Nate to be who they are? I think that they will be interesting to write! Thanks for reviewing!**

**potatoman098:** **That was a really good guess! It would give them a proper motive and explain Anders's red hair and Nate's temper. But, now that you mention Gangrel and Aversa, they will be making appearances in the near future! Stay tuned! Thanks for reviewing!**

**Ashylianshepherd: ****Heh, there was a sort of cliff hanger in this chapter too. That's kind of my thing when trying to be dramatic, lol. Novak is in for a tough time, and I cannot wait to write him more! Novak is easily one of my favorite OCs (Hewitt will forever be my favorite). I also really like Ruby and Dimitri's relationship, which we will see the fluffier side of in the next (Or next to next?) chapter! Thank you for reviewing!  
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**Once again, sorry for the late post! This will probably happen more likely than not, so make sure to check often! Thank you guys for being so understanding, and I'll see you next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon **


	42. Chapter 42 Merrymaking

**Hey guys! So, I have an announcement. After much thought and debate, THIS STORY WILL NOW BE POSTED SOLELY ON SUNDAYS. With my busy schedule on Saturdays in particular (I have a bowling league on that day), I've decided that it would just be easier and less confusing to have it be posted on one day. Now that that is out of the way, let's move onto the chapter! There is a lot of kid/OC development in this chapter, but it isn't very plot heavy until the end. To make a short re-cap, they just won State Championships, and now they are going to throw a party. Happy reading!**

**-I do not own Fire Emblem Awakening**

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"I can't believe we won!" Morgan beamed as he chatted with the rest of the Justice Cabal. They had just gotten back from State Championships that morning, and the three were hanging out at the Exalt house. The exciting part was the Frederick was so pleased with their success that he was going to hold a band wide party at their house. Their usually grandeur house was suddenly decorated with streamers and balloons as they waited for their guests. The three kids watched their parents put the finishing touches on the decorations, letting everything that was going on sink in," With everything that has been going on, I was expecting us to get fourth place if we were lucky!"

Owain chuckled," The fighting spirit of the Ylissian Shepherds prevails! I expected no less from a group as benevolent as ours."

Before he could continue, Lissa bolted up and grabbed her son by the arm," Come on, I want to get a family picture so that we can remember this night forever!"

"But mom-"

"No buts!" Suddenly, her expression shifted into a more solemn look," Your dad has been having a rough weekend, and I think this might make him happier."

Owain rose his eyebrow questioningly but didn't press the subject," Okay. Farewell, companions in arms! I shall return in record time!"

Morgan waved goodbye cheerfully and went to find his mother when a sigh interrupted him," Hrmmm..."

"Mmm?" He turned, only to find Cynthia slumped over and staring at the ground," Cynthia?"

The redhead didn't seem to notice him speak," Do they really...? But that would mean..."

Morgan spoke up in concern, worried that she was on the verge of having another breakdown," Is everything all right?"

Cynthia blinked out of her stupor and sent him a soft smile," Oh. Hi, Morgan."

"I don't think I've ever seen you this drained," He commented, not realizing he had said it out loud until the words left his mouth. He smiled sheepishly and questioned her," Is something on your mind?"

"No, I'm...," She almost immediately dropped the modest act and crossed her arms huffily," Well, yes, actually. Lately, it seems like the others have all been...," The redhead scanned the area before leaning in and whispering,"..staring at me."

Morgan rose his eyebrow," Er, you mean more than usual or...," He held his hands up in defense when she gave him a pointed look," What?"

She stuck out her tongue at him before continuing on," Well, I'm used to them watching, but not...you know...staring," She hugged her knees subconsciously," It's been happening when I give heroic pep talks. People always look, but..."

"...But?"

Cynthia rolled her eyes at her clueless friend," But whenever I do it lately, people just stare. A lot. And hard," She frowned," It's like they're boring into my soul with twin javelins of shame and regret."

The blue haired boy waved it off," Oh, that's just your imagination, I'm sure."

"No it's not. They pity me, Morgan! They're all embarrassed for me!" After realizing her outburst, she recoiled," And so now that's all I can think about. I can't even focus anymore! Seriously, I almost got run over by a group of Tubas yesterday."

Morgan hummed thoughtfully before snapping his fingers," Then I propose a little experiment."

The fifteen year old rose her eyebrow curiously," Oh?"

"If your heroic boldness is too much for them, why not try acting meek? In our next battle, take the field as a quiet, demure Cynthia. Then watch their reactions and draw conclusions from the experience," While he was smiling on the outside, he was dreading what his plan would bring. He didn't want Cynthia to change, and he prayed that everyone had the same opinion.

Said girl seemed uncertain about his plan as well," Yeah, but...what will that tell me?"

Morgan nodded and replied in a somewhat strained voice," If they're fed up with how rambunctious you are, they'll be glad you quieted down. But if they like your usual peppy self, they'll clearly be worried about you."

"...Geez," She grimaced," I'm not sure I even know how to act demure."

"Just think about your mother. Try to act as she would."

Cynthia watched her mom hanging streamers with Robin in the corner, jealousy immediately overcoming her. Everyone liked her mother, and maybe if she started to act like Sumia did, they'd stop giving her those mean looks. She also didn't want to let this Morgan down; if he wanted to see her act demure, she would at least give it a try," All right. I'll do my best!"

Morgan smiled, but couldn't get rid of that uncertain feeling nagging in his heart," Wonderful! We'll have your answer in no time, I guarantee it!"

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Robin wiped her hands on her pants and admired the decorations, proud of herself for succeeding in such a daunting feat. She waved goodbye to Sumia, who was getting dragged off by her daughter, and decided to visit her own children. Seeing that Frederick just sent Morgan and Owain off to buy extra food, she meandered into Lucina's room, surprised to find her pursuing something on Chrom's laptop," What're you looking up?"

Lucina looked up from the screen and smiled, flipping the computer around so that she could look at the pictures she was browsing through," Father left his social media sight up. I was going to exit out of it, but then I saw these pictures and couldn't bring myself to do so! Aren't they wonderful?"

Robin glanced at the page and grinned at the photographs of what looked like a calming hot spring," Wow, it's so beautiful! I wish that we could go somewhere like that."

"You took the words right out of my mouth, Mother," She scrolled through to the next picture and rose her eyebrow," Say, what do you suppose that building is?"

The white haired girl examined the photo before declaring," Going from the sign, I'd say it's a mixed bath."

Lucina blinked in confusion," Oh? What do they mix it with?"

Her mother broke into a deep blush when she realized she'd have to explain it to her naive daughter," Er, no...It's not the water that's mixed—it's the clientele," Judging by the bewildered look she still wore, Robin continued," A mixed bath is one that men and women can enter together."

"What?! S-such a thing exists? Goodness...," Lucina's face burned bright red," This place is certainly...progressive," Something suddenly clicked in her head, causing her blush to be replaced by an excited smile," Hmm, but that would mean you and I would be able to join Morgan and Father! How wonderful it would be to spend quality family time together in the bath."

Robin nodded," Yes, that's-" Before she could finish, the horror of her experiences with showers hit her at full force, causing her face to heat up even more," NO! Absolutely not! PLEASE promise me you won't suggest that that to him! If your father were to charge into the bath with us, we'd have chaos on our hands...," When she saw her daughter raise her eyebrow at her, she justified herself," Spending time as a family is all well and good, but bath time is an exception."

"Well, all right. If you say so. So...," She exited the vacation photos altogether and moved onto what looked like a link," What about this thing here?"

Robin, glad for the change of subject, shrugged,"A shopping website, I'd wager. You can go check it out if you like."

The blue haired girl nodded and clicked on the link," How charming! They have little dolls that bear your face, Mother."

"They what?!" She stared at the stuffed doll that bared her resemblance in a mix of shock and horror," Whoa, they do! But why?!"

Lucina turned to the description," Huh, it must be someone who only looks like you. It says here that this is a voodoo doll of sorts...how ironic!"

Robin didn't feel any better after hearing that," Still...that's a little...you know..."

"Indeed," Without warning, she clicked on the purchase button," It must be mine, by any means necessary!"

The drum major's eyes nearly popped out of her head," What? Wait, what?"

The sixteen year old placed a hand on her parent's shoulder," My apologies, Mother. I'm going to have to borrow father's credit card so that I can purchase them before they sell out."

"I'm pretty sure they're not going to leap off the shelves anytime soon!"

"One cannot take any chances," Her daughter looked in the distance, as if she could imagine the scene playing out in front of her," A greed-addled mob may be on its way to buy out the entire stock as we speak."

This time, Robin was the one confused," Lucina, you're scaring me a little bit."

Lucina clenched her fists," Yes... I, too, am gripped with fear! I must make haste! Hold on, tiny, voodoo Mother! I'm coming!"

"H-hey! Lucina, wait!" Her daughter jumped from her bed and rushed towards Chrom's room, leaving Robin alone to let it sink in," Yeesh, she's even fiercer than usual...Just how badly does she want that thing?"

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When it became 6:00, people started piling into the Exalt house for the celebration. Every Shepherd that could come stuffed themselves inside, each bringing different types of food. Emmy, who was already sick of her older brother trying to dance well, wandered into the kitchen. Much to her surprise, Nah was sitting alone at the counter, stirring her drink halfheartedly,"So this is what a party is like?" She slid into the seat next to her friend and continued on," I didn't really know what to expect. We didn't exactly have the chance to see any growing up, you know?"

Nah bit her lip," Um, actually..."

"What, you did?" Despite the jealousy she felt for her friend, she really wanted to hear what it was like," Really? Back in our time?"

The auburn haired girl nodded,"Yes...Well, yes and no. I did visit one. Just once..."

The fourteen year old let out a low whistle," Huh! Color me surprised. I wouldn't have thought we still had anything like that left. I'm envious."

"Well, don't be. It's...," She rubbed her arm uncomfortably,"..not a very happy memory."

How could a party not be a good memory? Emmy tilted her head," Oh? Do you mind if I ask what happened?"

"I was escorting a group in charge of procuring weapons. We passed by a village that was having a huge festival like party. We wanted to stay, but our mission had to come first, so we pressed on...," Emmy dreaded what was going to come next, but knew better than to speak up," Along the way, we talked about how fun it would be to stop by on the way home. It would be like living through my parents's dream, you know? They wanted to travel the world and go to as many different festivals as possible...But when we passed by again, the village was nothing but splinters and ash."

The blonde cringed," Grimleal?"

Nah sniffled," Yes...There was a kind old lady at the inn who gave us lunch when we passed through. But when we came back, the property was burned beyond recognition...," The auburn haired girl wiped her eyes," She was gone. They were all gone...Every one of them..."

"I get it, Nah. You don't have to say another word."

"And...being here now, I can't help but remember...," She hiccuped sorrowfully.

Emmy stepped down from her seat and moved to wrap her arms tightly around her friend," Nah...you'll just have to use this opportunity to rewrite those sad memories."

The twelve year old choked back a sob,"...Rewrite them?"

"Look at it this way; if we change the future, that old lady will not be killed. I know that guilt can haunt a person, but they way I see it is that we were brought back to have a second chance. that includes having fun at a party with your friends."

Nah giggled," I know...thanks Emmy. You're a really good friend."

The blonde grinned," You deserve it. Now, let's go have some fun!"

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Frederick couldn't help but notice that his wife was glaring at him for five minutes straight. While being somewhat disconcerting at first, it was even worse now that Chrom had wandered off to talk to Stahl. Seeing that he couldn't avoid the inevitable much longer, he hesitantly approached Tharja," How are you doing, darling?"

"Annoyed."

"I can see that," He knew that his wife hated social events, so he was incredibly surprised when she agreed to let them host. Frederick fiddled with his tie, stalling for time to figure out how to make her feel more comfortable. The answer came to him when the next song turned out to be a slow song. The brunette smirked and held out his hand to his wife," May I have this dance, milady?"

Tharja rose her eyebrow questioningly before hesitantly placing her hand in his," You better not step on my toes."

He spun her gently, wrapping one arm around her waist and the other in her hand," I wouldn't dream of it."

Cherche, who had seen the romantic gesture play out from across the room, jumped to her feet and dragged Kellam up with her," Come on, let's dance!"

"W-Wait!" He pulled away and looked to the ground in shame," I don't think I can."

His girlfriend softened and kissed his cheek," That's okay. As long as I'm with you, I'm happy," This seemed to win him over, because the next moment he was dragging her to the dance floor. Stahl was surprisingly not oblivious to the romantic scene and took Cordelia's hand in his, following the suit of his best friend. Morgan happily pulled Cynthia up with him to dance, and an incredibly shy Yarne nervously asked Kjelle to join him as well.

In a matter of no time, the dance floor was filling up with couples. Ricken got dragged out by Nowi, Virion suckered Sully into dancing with him, Anna pulled a blushing Hewitt up with her, Henry and Lissa hopped up, Lon'qu and Olivia joined with bright red faces, Emmy convinced Nah to dance with her for fun (in which they were shortly joined by Hadlee), and even Donnel was able to coax Bryony onto the dance floor.

Robin rolled her eyes in a motherly fashion as the floor filled with all her friends. It was incredibly sweet to watch them have fun after such a stressful year. Watching them dance was like an odd reminder that they were all still kids, despite the fact that they had to mature immensely over the past few months.

"Hey, Robin," She blinked in surprise and turned around to find Chrom holding out his hand to her," May I have this dance?"

A fervent blush spread across her cheeks like wildfire as she took his hand," Can you even dance?" She whispered," I know you're light on your feet in basketball, but-"

The white haired girl was interrupted when he spun her into his arms and smirked," Of course I can dance. What kind of a gentleman would I be if I couldn't?"

Lucina smiled as she watched her parents dance together romantically. She couldn't remember both of them being present during her childhood, excluding the rare sightings of them talking together late at night when they thought she was asleep. She knew that her dad gushed about her mother constantly, but it was only now that she could see how much they truly did love each other.

Would she ever find someone she loved like that? Lucina never thought things like this before they traveled to the future, but now she longed to have someone care for her like her father cared for Robin.

"Lucina?" Novak approached her, eyeing the fact that she was one of the only people at the party not dancing with someone else," Why aren't you dancing with the others?"

She shrugged," No one has asked me yet."

"Oh," An idea seemed to strike him at that moment, because he held out his hand to her," I know it's not ideal, but would you like to dance with me?"

The blue haired girl grinned and nodded, cheerfully hopping up from her seat and letting him guide her to the dance floor. He wrapped her hands just above her waist while she placed hers on his shoulders, both having a tint of pink on their cheeks," You know, you never did tell me what happened with you and your parents at State Championships."

"That's because I like to pretend it never happened."

"Novak..."

His gaze suddenly became distant," I can't decide if sticking around would be a bigger burden for my father of myself. I mean, I terrify him for some reason. He literally fainted the last time I saw him. I'm too scared to talk to my mom because I don't want her to have the same reaction. Her...absence, it's too fresh to me," He shrugged," Nevermind that, though. This is a party, we should be enjoying ourselves!"

Lucina pouted," You can't avoid your feelings forever, Novak."

"Yes, but I'm not ready to try anything either," The brunette hurriedly changed the subject," Heh, didn't we dance like this when we were younger? The only difference now is that Inigo isn't fighting to get your attention."

Lucina snorted," Do you think he'd do that if he was here right now?"

"I think I would," The blue haired girl's blush burned even brighter than she thought it could, causing Novak to chuckle at her as Inigo tried to shove his way in between the two. In the end, he settled on the gentlemanly approach," May I cut in?"

The brunette nodded, trying not to laugh at the irony of the situation," Go ahead."

Lucina sent her friend a glare for bailing on her, waiting until he was out of sight to turn back to Inigo. The two shyly faced each other for a full minute, only initiating something when Inigo wrapped his hands around her waist and grumbled," I'm a much better dancer than he is."

She rolled her eyes fondly," Are you jealous, Inigo?"

"Jealous? Of Novak? Of course not! I'm not jealous of how easily he can get girls to date him or how oddly attractive he is without trying," He cleared his throat awkwardly," What about you?"

Lucina giggled," Are you asking if I'm jealous of Novak?"

His blush increased," That does sound silly..."

"Right. Being jealous of Novak is your job," The sixteen year old commented.

"It is not!" Realizing that his whining wasn't going to get him anywhere, he took a different approach," You look really pretty tonight."

The blue haired girl felt her face heat up again, and she internally cursed herself for blushing so much around him," Aunt Lissa and Maribelle helped me pick something out, because they didn't trust me to pick something on my own."

"Good decision on their part," Inigo teased, earning a sharp elbow from his dance partner," What? Even you can't defend rainbow stripes and tutus!"

"That was stuff I wore when I was younger," She defended weakly. Suddenly, something occurred to her," Hey, how is Basilio doing?"

The brunette's grin quickly faded, replaced by immense guilt," His condition is getting worse, but he doesn't show it around my parents and I. The doctors don't know how much longer he'll survive," He sniffled before placing a have-assed smile back on his face," I'm sure he'll get better. Grandpa Basilio's a fighter-" He was cut off when Lucina placed her hand on his cheek," L-Lucina?"

"S-sorry... I just thought...," The blue haired girl retracted her hand," It looked like you were crying."

Inigo laughed unconvincingly," What, me? Ha ha! No, I'm not crying. I'm pretty sure I was smiling?"

She frowned," Yes, I suppose. Still, for a moment it looked like...Well, I looked at your face, and it just made my heart drop..."

"Oh, wow. Um...," What was he supposed to do now? It was his job to make sure everyone was happy, and if a slip like that gave him away, he had to try harder. He opened his mouth to crack a joke, but the look on Lucina's face caused something else to come out,"...I'm sorry. I certainly didn't mean to make you upset."

The trumpet player frantically shook her head," No, don't apologize! It's my fault for not understanding what you were trying to do that night at the hospital."

"...You mean when I was trying to make you smile?"

She nodded," I was unable to understand your thinking when you expressed it in words. I thought you were just flirting with me again. But when I saw your face just now, it all became clear to me. We influence the emotions of those around us...and a smile is a powerful thing. You must know that better than anyone, what with you always wearing that grin."

Inigo didn't know whether to be worried that she would dig deeper into his motives or happy that she would lighten her own mood. He decided to comment on the latter," That's it exactly, Lucina! And yours counts for double!"

The blue haired girl felt her lips lift into a smirk," Heh. Thank you, Inigo."

I"By the gods! Finally, she smiles!" This time, his grin seemed natural,"...Now was that so bad?"

Lucina shoved him lightly," I've smiled before! I mean, I smiled when you decided to cut in-" An enormous blush spread across her cheeks," Wait. Forget I said that."

He smiled playfully, trying hard not to jump for joy," Said what?" Little did she know, he had no intentions of forgetting her words.

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If only everyone knew that Robin was the vessel. They wouldn't be inside partying themselves to a stupor. Hell, they wouldn't even be on the same block as her. Even the people that knew the truth, Anders and Hewitt, were willing to set that aside and hope that things wouldn't turn out the same way.

Nate, on the other hand, refused to partake in any activity that would make his aunt more appealing to him. A voice in his head told him that he should have killed her when he had the chance and forsaken the existence of his cousins, but something prevented him from doing so. Was it his relation to her, or was he simply the same coward who had let his mother die?

The dark haired boy scowled and blew warmth into his hands as he sat on the steps of the front porch. His parents were probably under the impression that he was inside with his brother, but after only five minutes of being swarmed by the parents of his comrades, he decided he needed some air. That was an hour ago.

He sent yet another glance to the door to see if someone had finally noticed his absence, but it seemed that his family was too wrapped up in having fun to check in on him. Not like that mattered much in the first place. He was leaving this hellhole of bad memories as soon as Robin died. Would Anders come with him? He desperately hoped that his brother would, but the sound of him begging him not to kill their aunt was not a good sign. If the moment did come where he would have to finish the job, what would Anders think of him?

"Ah, just the man I was looking for," A voice rang out from the darkness of the cool, winter night," And here I was thinking that I'd have to throw on a blue wig and tell everyone I was that brat, Chrom Exalt."

Nate's hand automatically reached for his hidden gun," Who are you?"

A tall, lean man stepped from the shadows into the light from the porch. He smirked and looked Nate over, evaluating his skill set," My name is Rugor, but you probably have not heard of me. No need to introduce yourself, of course. I've heard a lot about the boy who tried to kill the vessel."

The sixteen year old narrowed his eyes suspiciously," What do you want from me?"

"Oh, nothing. Just a few simple questions and I'll be on my way," He leaned against one of the pillars and leered down at him," Why aren't you inside with the others? Wouldn't it be much more fun than sitting out here in the cold?"

"Don't expect me to answer that-"

"Don't worry, I'm only asking that you ponder the answers to these questions," Rugor continued on," What was I saying? Oh yes, why do you refuse to go inside? Is it because the vessel is not trustworthy, or are you simply afraid to form a connection with her? You can't kill someone you feel pity for."

Nate growled," What the hell are you getting out of this?"

He chuckled," I'm getting to the point, worry not. You know, there is a place you can belong. A place where everyone is itching to get rid of the vessel. We would kill her for you. All you would have to do is lure her out."

"How am I supposed to trust that?" He spat," I don't know who you are or what you want with her. You could be Grimleal for all I know."

Rugor smirked again, but this time, it held something deadlier inside of its usual cheekiness," What's so bad about being Grimleal-"

"Mom, you said you'd be here in five minutes!" Nate felt his heart clench up when the front door opened and a familiar looking light blue haired girl walked out," Not that I mind staying any later, but I have a ton of...," Her voice trailed off when she noticed the two men," Oh, excuse me-"

"Hang up the phone," Rugor commanded before whipping out a gun and pointing it at her," Don't make any loud noises either."

Maria squeaked and quickly sputtered," I-I gotta g-go m-mom. L-Love y-you."

As soon as she hung up, the man aiming his weapon at her motioned for her to drop the phone. She hurriedly did as she was told and turned to go back inside, but Rugor tutted," Where do you think you're going, doll face?"

Nate rolled his eyes, but his grip on his gun tightened," She's just a kid. What do you think she'll do?"

"Exactly what I don't want her to do," He waved Maria closer," Now, she's going to come with me-"

The dark haired boy finally whipped out his gun and aimed it at Rugor," I don't think so."

The tall man rose his eyebrow and chuckled," What, do you suddenly feel like being a hero? Do you even know what her name is, because she looks just as terrified of you as she is to me. Why does it matter to you what happens to her? Aren't you planning on killing someone else? This should be easy for you-"

"Get out of here before I shoot you," Nate threatened, only causing the man to laugh harder," What? You just said that killing someone else should be...what was that? Oh yeah," He turned the safety off," Easy."

Rugor snorted," You won't murder me here. That would draw too much attention to you-"

He was interrupted when Nate shot at him, missing his head by only a thread," I suggest that you start running," The once intimidating man nodded frantically and ran off with his tail In between his legs, dropping his gun in the process. The dark haired boy immediately took action and handed his own gun to Maria," Say that you found this and that it accidentally fired when you went to pick it up."

"W-What?"

Now that he had time to look at her, he could see that her face was soaked with terrified tears. Rugor was probably right when he said she was equally scared of him, so he had to be docile in his tactics of getting her to trust him," Do this so that they don't think anyone came here. It's for your own good."

She sniffled, sending a petrified glance over to where the villain had just been standing," W-What about t-the m-man?"

Nate picked up the discarded gun and turned the safety off," Don't worry. I'll take care of him," He could faintly hear the absence of music and the shuffle feet headed towards the door," None of this happened, got it?" He didn't wait for her answer and sped after Rugor, praying that she would listen to him.

Maria, on the other hand, stood as a shaking, blubbering mess. She could have died! Someone wanted to kill her! Did the younger boy want to kill her too? Her lower lip started to wobble again just as Frederick and a few of the older band students barreled outside," What was that?"

"I-I found a g-gun, and w-when I w-went to p-pick it u-up, it w-went off," Without warning, she crumpled onto the ground and started sobbing," I-I'm s-sorry!"

Frederick got down onto one knee and gently pried the weapon away from the girl, carefully handing it off to Chrom before moving the console Maria," It's going to be alright. Did you see anyone who could've owned it leaving as you came out? It might have been a trap."

The blue haired girl couldn't even muster words, instead opting to just shake her head no. Chrom, who had followed his guardian outside, took pity upon the girl who had once been obsessed with him," Come on, why don't we bring you inside? No one should be out here in this weather."

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Lissa had heard the gunshot go off, but after her brother practically begged her to stay inside, she was becoming extremely anxious. Henry took note almost immediately and tried to make her feel better," Lissa, I'm sure it was nothing. If someone had been hurt, it would have been accompanied by a scream or something too gory to fathom."

"Gee, that's a comforting thought," The blonde responded sarcastically. Henry widened his eyes in slight surprise, but when Lissa opened her mouth to apologize, the phone rang. The couple exchanged curious looks before the pigtailed girl went to go answer it," Hello?"

"Is this the Exalt residence?"

Lissa bit her lip, trying to recognize the deep voice that was speaking to her," Yes, it is."

"I am sorry to inform you that at 9:43 tonight, Alastor Exalt was found dead in his cell," The blonde's eyes widened in shock, but she couldn't bring herself to speak up," He committed suicide by hanging himself with his own bedsheets. We give the family our deepest condolences."

"Thank you...I guess."

"We will have the family lawyer call your family sometime this week to arrange an appointment.

Have a good night."

"You too...," Lissa halfhearted hung up the phone, a mix of emotions blazing through her. Sure, she hated that man, but was death the best option? Was it their fault, because this is the first suicide attempt that she had heard of from him. He seemed like his normal self when they went to go visit him.

Henry tilted his head," What happened?"

"My-" She cut herself off and started over," Alastor is dead. He killed himself a little over an hour ago."

"Yikes. Someone seemed a bit too excited to see the light!" When his girlfriend shot him an exasperated look, he smiled apologetically," Not the time?"

Lissa folded her arms and leaned against the counter," No, not really. I just can't believe that Mr. Exalt would kill himself! He would have done it sooner if he was the suicidal sort, right?"

"I don't think it works like that, Lissa."

"I know, but something just seems...off," She frowned when something she brought up earlier that weekend came back to her at full force," Hold on; what if he didn't kill himself?"

Henry laughed nervously," What are you talking about, Lissa?"

"What if someone murdered him?"

* * *

**So, Alastor Exalt (their murderous father) is dead. The question is if he committed suicide or was murdered? If he was murdered, who killed him? Bwahaha! Alright, so let's start the recap! Cynthia is starting to notice that people judge her, so she's going to try acting more normal. Morgan doesn't really want her to change the way she acts because he likes her fun-loving attitude, but he also wants her to be happy. Lucina and Robin got a cute mother/daughter moment (Hold on, tiny voodoo mother, I'm coming!), and while it was weird, I couldn't bring myself to leave it out. I wanted them to have a few cute moments together before...well, you know. Since there was that Hot Spring Scramble convo in there, I decided to give Nah a little depth and backstory as well. I switched out Kjelle for Emmy because Kjelle has been in a lot recently and Emmy is closer to Nah. We had cute dancing fluff, and I finally got to introduce the dynamic between Lucina, Novak, and Inigo! I can't say too much on the subject, but as I touched upon, Inigo is extremely jealous of Novak. This keeps him from forming a good friendship with him, but since Novak usually sees the best in everybody, he doesn't take it personally. LucinaxInigo fans, be prepared to be incredibly patient. Their relationship is going to be...fun...hehe. Nate's part of this chapter delved a little bit more into his perspective, because he thinks that he is going to have to kill Robin in order to save everybody else. Maria was put in there because she is going to play a part in Nate's story. I know that this may be heavily implied, but Nate actually does follow Rugor and kill him when they're far away from other people. Yeah. Nate doesn't mess around. Finally, we touched a bit on Lissa and Henry figuring out that Alastor is dead. There is a reason that they are the two to figure this out first. I won't add much more onto that. Review time!**

**Crowsandclouds: ****(This is from last week. Sorry I missed it!). Novak and Dimitri are both incredibly interesting for me to write, because in some cases, Dimitri would be seen as a villain. Maybe it's because I know what's going to happen to them, but I can also see both of their reasoning and cannot pick a side. That's cool! I didn't know if other schools used different commands or not, but the only official ones I could find were military calls, so I just went with what my school used. The two guys (as you know by now) are Anna and Hewitt's children! Will they continue to try and kill Robin, or will something happen? Once again, I'm really sorry I didn't respond to this last week, and thank you for reviewing!  
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**Kit-Cat Star:** **Their names are a bit trickier to find out, so I decided to point it out at the beginning. Fun fact! Anders name was originally Anthony for a really long time (I think I actually changed it recently), but I didn't want both of them to have normal names. They were fun to reveal, because it's hard to see at first, but once they say who they are, you can see it making sense. I started off writing them without caring too much, but by the end of their first support, I questioned why I didn't originally ship them together in the first place! Thank you for reviewing!**

**potatoman098: **** Oh, this is only the beginning of Novak's bad luck. You're right, the angst with Novak and Dimitri is pretty much always existance. I think that a huge part of that is because he doesn't accept his kid, and that is so out of the norm for everyone. If they were actually playable units in the game (Dimitri would be a dark knight, Ruby would be a bow knight, and Dimitri would also be a dark knight), he would be really distant in their supports and refuse him at first (Novak would still become a unit like in this story, but his persona would be more tragic). Ruby and Dimitri would also have to marry, which would be a bit disappointing to some people because he'd always have the same stats (Unless you changed their classes, of course). Now that I've gone off on a pointless explanation, I'll go back to the main subject (I'm sorry, I just really love that family). Yay, trying is fun! Your idea was really cool and clever, and it could have been possible if I planned on have Aversa and Gangrel a couple. Don't worry, they're not the only couple that will be...not encouraging to the difference of time periods (Aka, they are not the only futurexnon future couple). Thank you for reviewing! **

**ladyCubert128:**** Haha, I'm glad! I hope that you like it! Thank you for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy the story! **

**Amy47101:** **Hehehe, I love messing around with Anna's family's names. Hewitt must be so left out. Yup! They're the couple that has the most speculation, seeing that it is so weird. We'll see where it goes! Ha, I can get being really busy. Don't worry, I like hearing from you whenever you can! Thank you for reviewing!**

**The next chapter officially moves into the last arc, which focuses on the Grimleal cult. This will be the angstiest of all the arcs, so if you thought that last one was bad...well, this one is even more emotionally scarring. How is Robin going to figure out that she is the Vessel? What does that mean? Will Nate follow through and kill her, or will someone get to her first? Will the Shepherds start to turn on each other? Will there be a death? Stay tuned to find out! Thanks for reading, and I'll see you guys next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	43. Chapter 43 Mending Relationships

**Hey guys! Happy late Christmas! My gift to you is Part 3 (sorry, that was pretty cheesy). What do you guys think is going to happen in this final arc? We finally have introduced all of our Shepherds, but are there going to be any betrayals? Will someone die? What is the vessel? What does that mean? Will people start to turn on each other? There is so much that is going to happen in this arc, so hold onto your hats! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

_Now that Walhart was dead and Robin was finally learning more about herself, many figured that their lives would finally return to normal. Could you blame them? The Shepherds had just won State Championships and their biggest threat had just been eliminated. With Christmas just around the corner, things couldn't seem to get any better._

_As Robin digs deeper into her past, she discovers that her father, Validar Grimm, is planning something so drastic that it could destroy the lives of everyone she knows. Matters become worst when people start to question their loyalties and begin to turn on each other. Will the Shepherds come out victorious, or is the only solution to this never ending hell to destroy the person who seemingly started their problems?_

**Part 3; To Slay a God**

* * *

The party was long since over with most of the guests leaving after the gun fiasco. As much as Chrom wanted to believe that the entire incident was just an accident, he couldn't shake the feeling that it was also an omen of sorts. He told himself that it was because the first thing he heard when he came back inside was that his father was dead, but a part of him screamed that there was no way things would just return to normal when the future children were still present.

He cringed at the thought of Alastor being dead. Chrom had never been especially fond of his father, but the weight of being an orphan was like a punch to the face. Instead of feeling remorse, he just felt confused. Why would his father kill himself? Was their visit too much for him to handle, or was the jail just trying to cover up an execution?

"I know that face...," He turned his attention to Robin, who was standing in the doorway," Dueling with unpleasant thoughts, are we?"

Chrom sighed and patted the spot on the bed next to him," You know me well, Robin.""

She happily joined him, leaning her head onto his shoulder and allowing him to wrap his arms around her waist," I'm sorry about your father."

"It doesn't matter that he's dead-"

"Yes it does," She corrected," Despite all the evil things he did, you still feel like he's your father. Hell, I don't even consider Validar as my father in any way, shape, or form, but I'd still feel somewhat guilty if he died," Robin shrugged," I'm getting off topic. What I'm trying to say is that it's okay to mourn, even if it is for someone you hardly know...or like."

He bit his lip uncertainly," I guess..."

His girlfriend took this as a Segway to bring up something else," Hey, do you remember when Lissa first brought me here? It was after we spent the night at Frederick's house. She was fussing over me so much because I didn't have any clothes. To think, we were barely friends back then. Look at us now!" A nostalgic look glazed over her eyes," Do you remember when I met all the Shepherds? And Sumia...Ha ha! Oh, what a day! You were so proud of yourself when you tricked me into being your co-drum major, and so embarrassed when half the band started ridiculing you for calling me unladylike," She chuckled,"...Actually, those are some of my first memories, in a way."

Chrom managed to crack a tiny smile," Heh. I suppose so. I wish all our memories since could have been as joyful."

"I know...," Her grin turned into something more solemn," So much needless pain. So many days of hardship and doubt and fighting...," Robin nudged him playfully," We would have never made it without you there to guide us, you know."

The blue haired boy smirked," Funny. I was going to say the same to you."

Robin felt a tint of a blush across into her cheeks," I guess we really are two halves of the same whole."

"That's why I need you...," His face slowly spiraled back into its solemn state,"...Could you come with me to see my father one last time?"

"What?! No!" The couple flipped around, only to find Lucina in the doorway with Morgan,"...Er, that is...," She looked helplessly at her brother, who only shrugged. She mouthed Some help you are and turned back to her parents," Father, must you attempt this?"

The former drum major tried to frown, but his amusement in the matter was sticking out like a sore thumb to everybody except his daughter," Eavesdropping, young lady?"

Lucina cringed," Forgive me, Father. I didn't intend to...I came to speak with you, but I couldn't find the right moment and Morgan said-"

"It's all right, Lucina. I know you meant well."

Robin, on the other hand, was confused by her previous protests," Why don't you want Chrom to see his father! He's...not with us anymore. He can't do anything to us anymore."

Before she could answer, Frederick knocked on the door," May I come in?" When the family nodded, he made his way inside," I got another phone call from Plegia."

Morgan furrowed his eyebrows in confusion," What's Plegia?"

"It's our rival school," Robin answered," Your...my father is the principal there."

The older man continued on from her thought," Actually, your father is the one who contacted us. He wants to make another apology, this time to Robin."

This time, Chrom was the one to protest," No way! Not after the trick he played last time! That dastard is planning something, I know it-"

"Did he say what he was apologizing for?" Robin interrupted, trying to ignore the baffled look her boyfriend was sending her.

Frederick blinked a few times to regain his bearings before answering," He didn't say."

"It's an obvious trap!" The blue haired boy scoffed.

"I know it's a trap," Robin responded somewhat irritably," I...I think I should go anyways."

There was a brief silence before the room broke into loud objections. Despite loving the people around her with all her heart, their accusations of her foolishness was starting to wear down on her," Hey!" The four stopped when Hewitt entered the room, using himself as a barrier of sorts between them and his sister," Give her some space. She knows what she's doing."

Chrom narrowed his eyes," Who are you to say that? You've only known her as your sister for two weeks-"

"I've known her as my sister for nine years," He almost spat," Are you questioning my loyalty?"

"How can I not? Why did you just come out about your sibling relationship-"

Hewitt rolled his eyes," Because I just found out, like you said. Now stop trying to play the over protective boyfriend and take a moment to actually consider what is best for Robin."

Chrom looked like he had just been slapped in the face," I have always wanted what was best for Robin."

"Jail time was what was best for-"

"That's it!" Robin jumped to her feet and stood between the two boys, sending both of them glares," What are you? Children? I'm my own person, and I decide what's best for me!" She turned to look specifically at Chrom," You won't understand this now, but what's best for me at the moment is to follow through and see what my father wants."

Her boyfriend clenched his fists," You're right; I don't understand. How can walking into his trap be best for you?"

"Chrom-"

"Just answer me!" He pleaded," How can turning yourself into the enemy be good for you? You'd leave your family behind! Hell, they might even kill you!"

Robin glared fiercely at him," Can't you just trust me?!"

"No, I can't!" The words exited his mouth before he could stop himself, and when the reality of what he said sank in, guilt riddled his features," I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

The white haired girl shook her head stiffly, refusing anything that he could say," I'm going."

With that said, she shoved herself out of the room, mumbling something about walking herself home. Hewitt spared a glance towards the rest of the family before moving after her, presumably to accompany her. Before he could follow through, however, Morgan stepped in," I can go with her."

His uncle stared down at him for a few seconds and sighed," Make sure she doesn't do anything reckless."

"I'm on it!" He practically ran down the stairs to catch up with Robin, not slowing down until they were nothing outside," Mom! Mom, wait up!"

The white haired girl slowed down, allowing him to match her pace before continuing back to her apartment. For the first few minutes, the only sound was Morgan rambling on about different subjects to try and keep the mood light, but eventually he ran out of things to say and settled on a comfortable silence. It was when they reached the halfway point of their journey that Robin finally spoke up," You don't think I'm stupid, right?"

"You?! Stupid?!" Morgan looked aghast at the very idea," Of course not! You're the smartest, most skilled person I've ever met! No one could ever outsmart you!" His train of thought suddenly became defensive," Who said you were stupid?! Was it that Inigo kid that was hitting on Lucina? I don't trust him-"

"It wasn't Inigo," His mother giggled," I just...everyone thinks that it's a bad idea for me to go face my dad, but I think it's a bad idea if I don't. I mean, what measures will he start to take if I don't meet him? Will he kidnap people? I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me."

Morgan smiled," Heh. I knew you had a reason to put yourself in danger like that," Her first question popped back into his head," Wait, you don't think that dad thinks you're stupid, right? He would never-"

"I know. I'm just worried that he'll get carried away with himself."

Her son chuckled," Knowing dad, he'll definitely get carried away."

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Dimitri knew that something was going to go wrong when his younger brother burst open the door and whisper-yelled," Ruby's having morning sickness!"

The older boy's eyes flew open in horror as he sprung out of bed, practically tripping over his own feet as he stumbled down the stairs. He didn't bother questioning how he got in bed or why he was still in his clothes from yesterday. All that mattered was taking care of Ruby and getting the two of them out of his house before his parents could put the pieces together.

What was going on? She had never had morning sickness before! Was this something brand new, or was he not the only one that was hiding something? If it was the latter, why would she keep it from him? Did she not want him to feel responsible somehow? Now he was the one that felt sick.

The former college student shoved the bathroom door open and got down onto his knees next to his wife, whose head was currently resting on the side of the toilet seat. Her eyes slowly lifted to meet his, a grimace accompanying it," I tried to hide it-"

"Shh, it's not your fault," Dimitri softly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear," Don't feel guilty for things you can't control."

"But..."

He pressed his lips against her forehead and tucked his hand in hers," We'll get through this no matter what happens."

Dimitri gently nudged the door closed again and snuggled closer to his wife, rubbing comforting circles on her back as she held her stomach in misery," I read somewhere online that you should stay hydrated during...this. Would you like me to get you some water? It might help."

She rose her eyebrow," Where'd you read that?"

"...Well, there is this page online for...first time fathers-don't laugh at me!" His face turned red at her giggles," I was bored one day and...one day turned into a few days...You know, some of those guys have pretty funny stories!" Dimitri couldn't help but chuckle at how ridiculous he sounded," We're getting off subject. Would you like me to get you some water?"

Ruby nodded cautiously, but the grin on her face told him that his story made her feel at least a little bit better. Her husband patted her back one last time before getting to his feet and heading towards the kitchen. He pulled the first glass he saw from the cupboard and turned around to fill it up, only to find his parents staring at him," Uh...Morning?"

While his father seemed incredibly angry and anxious at the same time, his mother looked like she was going to burst into tears at any moment," W-Why didn't you tell us Ruby was sick? I would've helped sooner, b-but she didn't seem sick last night."

"Son, is there something you'd like to tell us?" Mr. Mork asked hesitantly. They were both acting like they already knew what the answer was, but neither wanted to accept the truth.

Dimitri bit his lip nervously, knowing that they wouldn't like the answer if he told them. Should he lie? What could he make up? They were right, Ruby wasn't showing any signs of sickness the night before. As much as he wanted to spare them the reality of the situation, he couldn't find another way out. He took a deep breath, fear building in him as he stated," Ruby is pregnant."

With the last thread of hope they could hold onto, his mother stuttered," A-And whose the f-father?"

"...I am."

Everything broke into chaos at those words; Mrs. Mork burst into sobs, clutching the counter for support as she begged him to tell her it wasn't true. His father just stared at him in a look Dimitri could only describe as disgust, making his stomach churn nervously," I need to get back to Ruby-"

"Our baby boy!" His mother cried uncontrollably," He's too young! Gods, he's too young!"

"Calm down, darling," Mr. Mork finally broke out of his judgmental glare to rub his wife's shoulder comfortingly," We'll get through this. I know somebody who can fix this-"

Dimtiri felt his heart drop," Fix what?"

His dad turned to acknowledge his son," I know of an abortion clinic that will solve all of our problems. We'll expect you to pay for at least half of it, of course, but-"

"Who said we wanted to abort the child?" The brunette asked defensively, not liking at all where this conversation was going," Can we talk about this later? Ruby is alone right now and I want to-"

"What do you mean you don't want to get an abortion?" His father interrupted, seemingly ignoring me his son's request," I know it's not morally sound, but you can't ruin our lives for one child!"

"What do you mean our lives?!" Dimitri thought back to the day Ruby said that she was pregnant. She was so scared, but the first thing she said after the announcement was that she was planning on keeping the child alive, even if he wanted nothing to do with it. It was only a few weeks later that the couple decided that not only would they refuse to abort, but they were going to try and keep the baby and raise him. He thought back to a couple days ago, when Novak begged him not to abort the child. His son was doing everything in his power to make sure that his future self wouldn't have to live the same life he had-

Wait. Did he just refer to Novak as his son? Why was he so shocked by that? Wasn't it true? Their resemblance was uncanny, and with all the other future children, it wasn't that surprising. Dimtiri swallowed hard when he realized that he had treated his son, who had obviously gone through a lot, the same way his parents were treating him. He clenched his fists in determination, deciding that it was high time that he started taking responsibility and acting like the father he was destined to be," We're keeping the baby."

His answer was like a slap to the face for his father," You're only in college! You can't raise a child!"

"Maybe I can't right now, but I'm going to try my damned hardest to make sure I can. Destroying that chance is something I'll never get over," His eyes suddenly caught on something in the hallways behind his parents; Ricken, Nah, and Novak were all watching the entire scene play out. He purposely made eye contact with his son and smiled," I promised someone that I wouldn't abort, and I'm not going back on that. Now, can I go back to Ruby?"

His mother sniffled," H-How could you? Why c-couldn't you w-wait until marriage l-like every o-other boy?"

"If it makes you feel any better, we're married too," Dimitri added childishly, finding some sort of sick pleasure when his parents' faces paled," I'm going to help my wife," With that said, he pushed his way past his parents, only stopping when he reached Novak," I'm sorry for everything I did. I don't deserve to call myself your father-"

Much to his surprise, his son's entire body lit up as he leapt forward and wrapped his dad into the tightest hug he could produce," I knew it! I knew you weren't bad deep down! With the way mom talked about you all the time, I knew there was a good person inside of you!" Novak softened," I'm sorry for stressing you out. Uncle Ricken explained everything to me, and I know I might've come on a little strong, but..."

Dimtiri hesitantly returned the hug, accepting the warm feeling blossoming in his chest," It's okay. We'll get through this together."

"Thanks, dad."

His father pulled apart from the hug and motioned towards the cup in his hands," Now, I'm going to do what I should've done a while ago; help my wife."

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When Cherche needed time to think, she took Minerva on a walk in the dog park. Something about seeing other cute dogs made her feel more at peace and forget her problems, even if it was only for a short time.

She unconsciously tightened her grip on Minerva's leash when a small child zoomed past her, unknowingly reminding her of what was troubling her in the first place. Why didn't she have children? From the conversations with the other girls, she seemed like the one that wanted one the most. Was something wrong with her, or did something happen to her husband? Cherche sighed forlornly and turned her attention to Minerva, who was starting to pull in the direction of a cute looking dog. Her owner smiled and allowed her pet to rush ahead to the other, watching in awe as they came closer; the dog looked incredibly similar to hers. She brushed off the odd butterflies in her stomach and cleared her throat when she reached the two owners," Do you have a moment?"

The brunette was wearing sunglasses, but from what she could see, his face seemed to fill with dread when he faced her. The younger boy next to him, who was sporting auburn hair, bit his lip to try and keep from laughing. His friend sent him a glare before turning back to Cherche," What is it?"

Cherche motioned towards his pet," I was hoping you might let me introduce my Minerva to your adorable dog."

"Why?"

"To see which of ours is cuter. Not very sporting of me when mine is the finest in the world, I know," She teased," Actually, my dog just wanted to play with yours for a bit. Is that alright?"

The brunette nodded hesitantly,"...Do as you please."

"I will, then! Thank you," Cherche clapped her hands cheerfully and kneeled down to pat his dog's head, immediately overjoyed when it rolled onto it's back," Hee hee! Oh, but you ARE cute! She's nearly a match with Minerva!" She furrowed her eyebrows when the dog responded to the name,"...Nearly so in every way. Wait, what kind of a trick is this? They...they look IDENTICAL!"

The boy sighed," That's because they almost identical. They're related, you see. This is Minerva's a daughter, Minerva...the second."

The redhead gasped and turned back to her dog, who was watching her curiously,"...M-Minerva? How is that possible?" Suddenly, everything clicked in her head," Wait...are you...?"

He took a strained breath and shook his head yes," I am, though I had not intended that we meet."

"Why not?"

He kneeled down to rub his dog's belly," I came back in time so I might release Minerva. Not to seek out parents to whom I've already bidden farewell."

Cherche frowned at the last part, but decided to leave it go unspoken for now," What is your name?"

"Gerome."

The auburn haired boy cleared his throat awkwardly, reminding the mother son duo that he was still present," I'm Brady."

The French horn player rose her eyebrow questioningly," Are you my son as well?"

"Gods, no!" He blurted," My Ma is someone else! I just haven't met 'er in this time yet. Gerome has let me tag along, though. We're look'in after each other."

"You are lucky to know someone of such kindness," Cherche smiled,"...As, I imagine, am I."

Gerome scowled," Don't say that. I've no intention of getting close to you. Fate will not be mocked," His face softened," This war may claim your life anew, and I'll not weep twice for losing the same mother. My burden is heavy enough."

The redhead felt her heart break at her son's misery. She knew that the other children's parents had died as well, but the only one that showed any signs of this amount of guilt was the newest one, Nate. Was there something buried in his past that he didn't want to dig up again? She tried to reach out for him," But yet you carry it still-"

Gerome's head shot back up, silencing his mother with just one movement," That's enough."

She recoiled, but didn't back down," I see. Now, I understand that you do not want to build any more relationships, but I'd feel a lot safer if you came back with me."

"Why?" He narrowed his eyes suspiciously, almost as if he was expecting her to withdraw her request.

"First of all, Brady needs to meet his parents. Secondly, there is this war that you children keep mentioning, and I'd rather have you fighting by our side than meandering around by yourself," She smiled hopefully," Do it for those you care about if you won't do it for yourself."

The brunette observed her for a few minutes, debating whether or not to listen to her. It was only when Brady nudged him that he gave in," Fine. But I'm only doing it for Minerva."

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Levy rubbed the back of her leg with her other foot nervously as she stood by her locker, cursing the fact that she was pushed to skip a grade after testing. Tanith had strongly encouraged her to start going to school with the others, and while it was nice to be with the majority, she felt a bit out of place. She wished Inigo was there, but he was still getting enrolled. He wouldn't be joining her until the end of the week.

Her thoughts were interrupted when a huffing boy collapsed on the lockers next to her, unintentionally scaring the crap out of her," Ah ha! Found you, Levy!"

Levy lit up when she saw Owain and jumped up to hug him," Oh my gods, it's you! I haven't seen you since we were separated!" She pulled apart shyly when her mind brutally reminded her of the huge crush she had on the white haired boy. How could she not? With his fun personality and daring nature, she would never have a boring day! The only problem was the slight age difference. After all, he was two years older than her. He would never want to date someone as young as her. When Levy realized she was getting lost in thought, she shook her head and smiled apologetically," Sorry, were you looking for me? And what's got you so out of breath? Has something happened?"

Owain held his hand on his chest to properly catch his breath, his voice somewhat raspy when he finally responded," Aye, it has! The second I first saw you, something wondrous happened! A charge coursed through my body with the electrifying force of summer lightning!"

Levy's face heated up," Er, what?"

"Though you wear a different face, I knew you for my fated ally! Across a thousand thousand lives have we shared the fortunes of war!" He declared confidently.

"...I'm afraid I'm still not following."

The white haired boy clarified himself," You and I are partners, bound tight by the red string of fate since time immemorial. If we join forces once more in this life, no foe could hope to stop us!" He was thrown off when Levy started giggling," Wh-what's so funny?"

The purple haired girl smiled," You are! That was amazing. Is it from a play, or did you write it yourself?"

"I wrote it myse-" He caught himself and backtracked," Uh, no! I mean, I didn't write it at all! I'm saying it because I mean it!"

Levy chuckled," But how could you possibly know we were partners in a previous life?"

The fifteen year old scanned the area cautiously before whispering," My sixth sense bespoke it to my third eye."

"Ha ha ha! Oh gods, that's brilliant!" She grinned,"You really have a gift for this, Owain."

Said boy pouted," But I'm not... This isn't just..."

Levy suppressed her giggles and got back on track to keep her friend from getting upset," Okay, okay. So if we WERE fated partners, can you prove it?"

"Of course! Name your challenge!"

Wait, was he really going to fall for it? The possibilities were endless! She could make him do anything she wanted! The romantic side of her begged her to command him to ask her out, but the mischievous side of her wanted him to do something ridiculous. Before she could decide what she wanted, she looked at the growing impatience on his face and blurted," No incarnation of me would ever settle for a partner who couldn't cook."

Owain's face went blank,"...As in food?"

She shrugged," There is something wonderful about one person preparing food for another. It shows they care, and in turn gives the other person strength."

This seemed to be a good enough explanation for him, because he gave her a thumbs up," So be it! I shall cook a meal fit to dispel any doubts of our star-linked fates!"

He was going to do it! She tried to keep herself from squealing and gave him a thumbs up in return," Hee hee! I can't wait!"

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"Olivia, may I speak to you?"

The pink haired girl blinked in surprise and turned around to find Lon'qu, tugging awkwardly at his collar," Oh, hello! What do you want to talk about?"

He was silent for a few seconds before shyly muttering,"...Us."

That word alone caused her face to burst into an unflattering blush," W-What?"

Lon'qu sat down, motioning for her to do the same. When she did, he started speaking again," The only other girl I've liked was a person named Ke'ri, and she was killed by a group of Grimleal when we were younger because I was not strong enough to protect her. I didn't want anyone else to get hurt ever again, so I blocked myself from having any form of a relationship. After joining the Shepherds and...meeting you, everything changed. My fear of losing people is still there, but...," Lon'qu reached for her hand, and she gladly gave it to him," Unlike how I felt with Ke'ri, you make me stronger. In any case. I must thank you for helping me master this skill I couldn't have done it without you, Olivia."

The dancer blushed and turned her gaze to the ground," Are you sure you want to be with a stuttering loser like-" She was cut off when Lon'qu gently cupped her face with both of his hands, causing her stomach to erupt in butterflies," Lon'qu?"

"You are the only one I want to be with," He stated confidently," No other girl will ever compare to the way you make me feel," With that said, Lon'qu slowly leaned down and hesitantly pressed his lips against hers. She welcomed the kiss happily, clutching his shirt as the kiss deepened.

She couldn't help but giggle when they pulled apart, because his face was just as red as hers," Oh Lon'qu, I was beginning to think you didn't return my feelings."

He smirked," How could I not?"

Olivia opened her mouth to flirt some more, but a different thought popped into her head," Oh yeah...I didn't want to pop this onto you out of the blue, but you probably would like to know that-"

"Inigo is my son?" Lon'qu had to bite back a laugh at his girlfriend's horrified look," I overheard your conversation. It was what fueled me to finally...confess my feelings for you."

The pink haired girl's shoulders slumped in relief," Really? I'll have to thank him for that, then."

The brunette chuckled," I'm sure he'll appreciate that."

* * *

**Olivia and Lon'qu are finally together! The last couple in that generation is solidified in a cute way! We got a little bit of backstory involving Ke'ri, but it mentions being mugged by a Grimleal murder gang. Does that sound familiar? Okay, let's start at the top! In this arc, it's going to focus more on the trouble that Chrobin is going to have to face and how this will affect their relationship. As you saw above, they already had one of their first fights, and it looks like Chrom didn't persuade Robin to stay away from Plegia. What will happen when she gets there? Will we have some new members join the Shepherds, or will old friend reveal themselves to be the enemy? Dimitri's parents found out about Ruby's pregnancy, and to some degree, that showed Dimitri a glimpse of what it was like for Novak when he rejected him. So they finally made up! Since the father/son duo did stop fighting, the story will focus a little bit less on them in the next few chapters (Novak may not be involved in that, because he is very close with both Lucina, Nah, and Inigo). Cherche met Gerome, and it went...okay. Will he stay after the fight? Will he seclude himself from the others? Brady gets to meet his parents in the next chapter (I'm super excited)! Levy also has a huge crush on Owain, but he is completely oblivious to it (or is he)? Review time!**

**Kit-Cat Star:** **Same! It's really fun to have mysterious characters, especially if they butt heads with Robin (first Frederick, then Gaius, and now Nate)! What makes it ironic is that he's her nephew! I'm excited to write even more Lucina/Inigo, especially since Novak is friends with Lucina and Inigo is super jealous of him. Maybe you're right! Who knows if he was murdered or not? Thanks for reviewing!**

**potatoman098:**** Hehe, this story is super angsty now. Oops...I didn't realize how heavy some of the stuff I've been writing has been. For example, I counted most of the last chapter as fluff because it centered more around the party, but even there, there was Novak talking about his family drama and Nate's encounter with Rugor. Yes, he was the boss! I try to pick bad guys from battles and put them in instead of making up a random bad guy ( Did you get the reference with the blue wig?). Good job catching that! Yeah, Nate knows that what he's doing is bad, but he know that the consequences for not doing anything is even worse. He's stuck in an odd predicament. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Golden-Lightning:** **(I'm going to answer this all at once). Hi! I've missed you! That's okay, I put off stuff a lot too with my busy schedule. Read whenever you have time and don't stress yourself out too much! I've touched on the subject of Lucina and Inigo's relationship being tricky, but the story will touch more on that later. Thank you! It was suprisingly fun to look up fancy words for Laurent to say, but there is a reason he is not the star of this story. Ah, you've come upon the Grimleal death gang! I've got plans for them, and they will reference to something in the game. I'm not saying what it is, and it's not going to be super huge characters, but they will reference things. That's a good idea with Henry and Ricken! I'll keep that in mind for the story later on! The jealousy should be pretty funny, mostly because it includes mainly oblivious characters. Spoilers for LucinaxInigo! The Christmas chapter won't be for a few weeks, but I like that idea! I have a few couples that will encounter that in mind...bwahaha! The parent issue has finally been solved! Yay for Novak (seriously, I adore Novak. He's tied for my favorite OC). Yay, you caught up! I cannot wait for fates! I'm hoping to get it before I go to Disneyland in Febuary (it is released a few days before I go, so we'll see what happens). I'm going to get Nohr, and my younger brother might get Hoshido. Then, we'll switch and play the other game for a little bit. Don't tell him I said this, but I'm planning on stealing his version when (if?) he gets bored of it. I do not have a miiverse because my younger brother is the one who owns our WiiU. Thank you for reviewing every chapter! It was super cool to hear all of your feedback! Thank you!**

**So, what do you guys think is going to happen? I don't have much more announcements other than the continuation of Sunday posts. The next chapter will definitely have Brady reuniting with his parents and Robin finding out what Validar wants with her. Will anything else happen? Honestly, I'm not sure. I'll see what happens when I start writing. Thank you guys for reading, and I'll see you next week! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	44. Chapter 44 Invisible Ties

**Hey guys! This chapter picks up where our last chapter left off, and I'm warning you right now, there's a cliffhanger at the end. There is also very little fluff in this chapter, aside from the last child reuniting with their parents (it's super cute)! I don't want to spoil too much for you guys, but I will say that the plot picks up in this chapter and leads us to our next enemy. Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

When Robin exited her apartment, she didn't expect to find Hewitt waiting for her. She sent him a brief glare before continuing on past him," If you're here to stop me, you might as well just turn back around-"

"I'm here to go with you," He interrupted," Look, I get where you're coming from. You forget that I grew up with the Grimleal. You don't want them to start targeting people, right?" She looked at him in surprise, mentally kicking herself for not considering that earlier," I'm going with you to make sure that you come home afterwards."

She narrowed her eyes challengingly," It's going to be dangerous."

"I'm more accustomed to danger than you are. I'm going to look after you," Hewitt quirked his eyebrow," Shouldn't you be the one scared?"

Robin shook her head, but her hand unconsciously started pulling on the sleeve of her sweatshirt. When she finally realized what she was doing, she felt a pang of guilt. If Chrom had saw that, he would've taken her hand in his and comforted her. As much as she loved Hewitt, he was no Chrom. Was it the best idea to be doing this behind his back? She bit her lip," Yeah...but I'm not scared of what might happen to me there."

Her brother observed her carefully before commenting," You're scared of what the consequences are going to be-"

"Mother! Wait up!" Robin felt a wave of dread wash over her when Lucina rushed up behind them," I'm coming with you."

The white haired girl crossed her arms," No you're not! It's too dangerous!"

"That's not fair! You're letting Uncle Hewitt go with you!"

"Hewitt can take care of himself. I don't have to worry as much about him."

Lucina placed her hands on her hips challengingly," I can take care of myself as well! Anyways, I'll just follow you if you tell me to go away. It's best if you just let me come along!" Her face became solemn," I want to help you."

Robin pressed her lips in a fine line and looked helplessly to Hewitt, who nodded in support of her daughter. After much thought, her shoulders slumped in defeat," Make sure to stay close by us, okay? I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you."

The blue haired girl smiled," I won't fail you, mother."

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Chrom immediately knew where Robin was when she didn't show up to school that morning. He cursed under his breath and turned helplessly to Lon'qu, who rose his eyebrow questioningly. Of course he didn't know anything. The blue haired boy took a deep breath before raising his hand," May I go to the bathroom?"

The woman nodded absentmindedly and continued her lesson on as he exited the room. As soon as he was out of sight, he pulled up his phone and dialed his girlfriend, only to get her voicemail. He tried to keep himself from imagining every deadly outcome and pushed his way out of the school, heading straight for Emmeryn's old car. He had inherited in after her death, and even though driving in it made him feel queasy, he didn't give that a second thought.

He desperately revved up the engine and drove away, heading straight for Plegia. He didn't want to think of the danger that Robin was going to get herself into, but the haunting vision of her corpse kept popping up in his head. Chrom ran his hand through his hair worriedly and turned up the music, trying to drown out all negative thoughts.

"Ooh, I love this song!" Chrom's eyes popped wide open and horror, causing him to slam on the brakes. He felt someone slam against the back of his seat and mutter a small," Ow...What was that for?"

The blue haired boy spun around, only to find Morgan camped out in his backseat," Morgan? What in Naga's name are you doing here?! You should be in school!"

The freshman shrugged guiltily," Sorry, but Lucina and I figured you'd try and leave-"

"Lucina's in on this too? Where is she?"

"She went with mom. I wanted to go too, but she said I didn't have enough experience in battle to come. I disagreed, but she threatened to tell Cynthia-" His voice trailed off when he noticed how pale his father's face was," Dad? Are you okay?"

The senior gulped, allowing his anxiety to get the best of him. Not only did he have to worry about Robin, but now their daughter was going after her?! What if one of them got hurt? Hell, what if one of them died?! If the same Grimleal that killed Emmeryn recognized them, they would try and harm them as well! He clutched the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white, unaware of the growing worry on his son's face," Dad? Dad, snap out of it! Dad!"

Chrom blinked a few times and released his grip, staring at his hands in shock. What had just happened? He was fine a few seconds ago, but as soon as the threat of losing two of his family members was related to Emmeryn, he broke down. He gently clenched his fists and turned back to Morgan, flinching when he saw the fear on his face," Don't worry. I'm okay now."

"Are you sure?" The younger boy climbed into the front seat and frowned," We should go back to school. I trust Luci and Mom to be okay."

"But what if they aren't?" He knew that leaving now would potentially put him in danger, but that fact was overshadowed by his need to save those closest to him," I can't risk losing anyone else. I'm going after them."

Morgan bit his lip thoughtfully before buckling his seatbelt," Okay, but I'm going with you."

"No you're not-"

"I'm not letting you go alone," His son smiled cheekily," No offense, but I don't think you've ever been in a real fight."

Chrom rose his eyebrow, trying not to be offended," And you have?"

"It'll come to me," The blue haired boy replied nonchalantly, but his features gave away something much deeper. His father opened his mouth to question him, but Morgan cut him off," We shouldn't be wasting time. Let's go before it's too late."

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Brady didn't mean to get into a fight on his first day of school. In fact, he was more than willing to prove to everyone that his frightening appearance didn't match his personality. It was only when some idiot pushed Levy down that he was ready to rumble. He would've won the fight too if Gerome hadn't dragged him away, murmuring that it was irresponsible of him to attract attention to the future generation. Brady winced at his tone at first, but the appreciative look on Levy's face made up for it.

Unfortunately, he came out of the brawl with a black eye. He swore left and right that all it needed was some ice, but Levy insisted on taking him to one of the doctors in training that the band had. Unfortunately for him, the only one present was a familiar looking blonde that he wasn't ready to confront.

He cleared his throat awkwardly as his mother observed him, tutting in annoyance before checking his eye to see if it needed stitches," Dear, this is quite unorthodox. We haven't had a fight in our school since somewhat challenged Gaius. I was hoping I wouldn't have to patch anyone else up during my lunch, but it looks like that was a wasteful thought. What do you have to say for yourself, young man?"

Brady looked down at the ground sheepishly," Sorry, Ma."

Maribelle's hand froze above his eye," What did you call me?"

"The name's Brady," He started, internally cursing himself for his slip," I'm-"

The blonde pulled away and gave him a glare that could make Grima shrivel up in fear," I'm sorry, but I only cure physical ailments. Broken bones and the like. You're clearly a deeply troubled individual whose diseased mind is beyond my healing."

She turned to walk away, but he grabbed her elbow and spun her back around," Don't leave! Just wait for a minute and look at this!"

He pulled her ring, a rose-gold colored trinket with her family crest on it, from around his neck and displayed it for her. Maribelle's mouth opened in shock," That's...my ring! Then, that makes you..."

"Right. Like I was trying to say, I'm-"

"A thief! A rapscallion! A common lowborn cutpurse!" She slapped him upside the head and tried to rip the piece of jewelry from around his neck," How dare you sneak in here and steal my prized possessions-"

Brady pried her hands off of his prized possession and hurried stuffed it back down his shirt," Geez! Stop interruptin' for one blessed second, and check yer ring!"

The blonde gave him a pointed look before looking at her finger, surprised to see it was exactly where she left it,"...Oh. It's still here."

"That clear things up any, Ma?" Brady watched as his mother's face slowly morphed from shock to disgust and frowned," What? Do ya still think I'm lyin'?"

Maribelle pushed her bangs back and groaned," How on Earth did I give birth to a common thug?"

"Beautiful girlfriend!" Gregor popped up from behind the two, unintentionally scaring the crap out of both of them," Gregor saw his beautiful lady in distress and came to be the hero!" He brought his voice down to a hushed tone," Gregor is also skipping class, so help make heroic rescue quick."

The sophomore pursed her lips, glancing between the two before commenting,"...Now I know where he gets his manners from."

Brady snorted," Aw, come on, Ma! That's harsh! Sure, I'm not the prettiest guy around, but I'm no thug, and I AM your son!" He turned to his dad and smiled," It's good to see you too, Pa."

"Pa?" Gregor lit up," Ho ho! Maribelle and Gregor had cute little babies in the future! Gregor was starting to get worried he died heroically in battle before he could produce a bounty of beautiful children with his beautiful girlfriend!"

The auburn haired boy puffed his chest out proudly," Actually, I'm the only kid you and Ma had."

Maribelle pinched the bridge of her nose in distaste,"...How did I ever permit my child to grow up referring to me as "Ma"?"

"You gave up tryin' after a decade or so," He chuckled," It probably didn't help that Pa encouraged it."

The girl sent her boyfriend a glare before turning back to her son," Well, can you at least ride? Have you read the classics? Do you play violin? Chess?!" She scrambled hopefully for some chance that she had a chance to raise her son.

Brady sensed this and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder," Yeah, all of the above. You beat all'a that junk into me."

"Glory be! My son is salvageable after all!" After what seemed like an eternity of watching his mother cringe, she finally blessed him with a smile.

"Uh...thanks?"

Maribelle took his hands in hers and patted his cheek," Don't look so forlorn, dear. You've come a long way, but Mother's here now. I'll take care of things from now on."

He stiffened, immediately remembering the countless times his mother had done those exact same motions. The wall that he had managed to scrap together crumpled down all at once, and he started to sniffle helplessly," I missed you guys so much..."

"Do not even THINK of crying! It does not befit one of your station!" Much to his shock, she started sniffling as well," Plus, you'll set me off as well..."

Gregor looked between the two frantically," Oh no! Gregor is failing at keeping his family happy! Do not worry! Gregor will fix this!" Without warning, he pulled both of them into a tight hug," Does family still feel like crying?"

Brady felt a tear slip down his cheek," S-sorry, I just...I...," He buried his face in his mother's chest," Oh, Ma!"

Maribelle felt herself starting to cry as well as she hugged the two most important men in her life," Oh, Brady!"

The senior was baffled at how easily the two had started sobbing and hugged them even closer," Do not worry, family! Gregor will fix this! Class is going to be skipped today, because Gregor is going to spend school time hugging his family until they feel better!"

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Robin didn't know what to expect when she arrived at Plegia Academy, but when they arrived to find it completely deserted, she was greatly unnerved. It was even more concerning that both Aversa and Validar were waiting for them right at the entrance.

Validar smiled eagerly when his children entered," Robin! Welcome," His eyes flickered to Hewitt, and for a split second, he scowled," My, do my eyes deceive me, or is my son here as well? Both accompanied by a friend. What is your name, darling?"

Lucina narrowed her eyes challengingly," Does it matter?"

"Heh, you don't trust me. How endearing."

The white haired girl tried to divert the conversation away from the identity of her daughter,"...I was told you had something you wished to tell me."

Mr. Grimm gasped," My my! No time for courtesy? Such impatience. Don't you agree, Aversa?" Said girl didn't answer, because her eyes were trained on Hewitt and wide in horror. Her father grimaced and continued on," Do you really want to leave so badly? This concerns me."

Hewitt crossed his arms," Why don't we stop the small talk and cut to the chase? What do you want with us?"

"Us? I think you have me mistaken," His smirked," The only one I wanted was Desdemona. Everyone else is an intruder."

Lucina subtly rested her hand over her gun, just in case she needed to pull it out at a moment's notice,"...Intruder?"

"You are not supposed to be here. You must be destroyed!" He snapped his fingers, cueing four Grimleal members to slink in from the shadows.

Without warning, Aversa stepped between the cult members and the teenagers," You promised that you wouldn't hurt either of them if they came back. You wouldn't dare cross me!"

For a brief second, the man faltered. Although there wasn't much to her threat, something about the background of it scared him. Was it because she knew too much about their plans, or was it something much more frightening? Robin didn't really want to know," Do you honestly think you can keep Desdemona from fulfilling her birthright?" Validar spat," This is what she was born to do! Nothing can stop the prophesy from coming true!"

Hewitt grabbed his sister's hand and hissed," We need to get out of here _now_."

"What about-"

"Oh, I understand now!" Validar roughly pushed Aversa aside to face his other two children," You are trying to keep her from the truth because you're afraid of her choice!"

Robin desperately turned to her brother," What is he talking about? What choice?"

"It is the choice of rebirth," Validar boomed," The choice to return Grima to this world!"

The white haired girl faltered," Grima? You mean the gang leader that Chrom's relative helped catch? He's long dead now, isn't he? You can't bring people back from the dead," Once again, she turned back to Hewitt," R-Right? No one can resurrect someone else."

Lucina shook her head wildly, the name all too familiar to her," If you do this, you'll DESTROY the world! I've seen it!"

Validar leered down at the girl," Then I pray today's spectacle lives up to her nightmares! While we couldn't save him mortal body from deteriorating, we have managed preserve his glorious mind. With his brain in my possession, I'll arouse Grima! The fell dragon needs only a mortal vessel, which you so kindly brought along..."

Robin's heart dropped,"...Oh, gods. He means me," Everything was starting to make sense now. Why would her father care so much about knowing where she was if she wasn't any use to him? That's why he visited her in jail. That's why he made contact with her after Emmeryn's death. That's why Nate wanted to kill her...It was all because she was Grima.

Her father grinned darkly," You ken quickly, Robin. That's my girl. Does this mean you've finally regained your memories and are willing to-"

"No! Never!" She shook her head defiantly. There was no way she would be the cause of the horrible future that killed her friends and haunted her children," I'll die first!"

Validar's smile vanished and was replaced by something much more unsettling," You carry the blood of the fell dragon. After years of trying to reproduce a duplicate, we've finally succeeded! His soul slumbers within you. And now the time has come to awaken you both!"

Robin flinched at her father's psychotically expression," Oh my gods, you're insane!"

"The Grimleal have worked for generations to create someone like you... A vessel worthy of our master. Simply having Grima's blood in your veins is not enough... My father was not worthy, nor was his father before him. Even I was not able to accept Grima's most sacred gift. I was about to give up when neither of your siblings could possess his essence, but you? You had all the makings. You were perfection!"

Lucina started shaking uncontrollably," N-no...It can't be..."

Validar ignored her and continued on," If your damnable mother hadn't been seized by weakness and fear...She betrayed us, stole you when you were eight, and fled with you and your brother in the night! We hunted you three for the longest time, killing anyone that refused to give us information on your whereabouts. We thought was had gotten you, but your damnable brother and you got away! At least your mother was killed in the process," He shrugged," We thought that we had lost you for good, but you managed to make a name of yourself and lead us right to you! All that matters is your return. That you are here is PROOF of your purpose! It is why you still draw breath!"

Aversa tried to reason with him," Father, I want the return of Grima as much as the rest of you, but you cannot make Desdemona the vessel! Wait until she births the next one!"

"We cannot risk the change in blood," Validar snapped," If you are truly loyal, you will never question me again. Understood?"

The woman looked between her siblings and her parent before taking a step away from him," They're just kids, father! I cannot justifying murdering my younger siblings."

"Then you are no better than your traitorous brother," He pushed his daughter into the other three children and looked Robin in the eye," Are you going to turn yourself over and follow your destined path?"

His youngest child backed away," Never!"

Validar scoffed," Then this meeting is over. Seize them!"

Hewitt and Lucina whipped out their guns and stepped in front of of Robin, slowly backing away from the approaching enemies," Just as we thought...," She grimaced, wishing that she had brought her own weapon so that she could defend herself.

Her brother's lips pulled up into a small smirk," Don't worry; I had a backup plan; GANGREL!"

Much to the girls' shock, one of the masked men pulled their disguise away, revealing the redhead she recognized immediately. He shot at the Grimleal member next to him and waves the teenagers towards a hallway," This way! Quickly!"

Robin bit her lip hesitantly, but seeing that staying behind was a much worse option, she followed his orders. She forced Lucina to go before her, but Hewitt made sure that he was taking the rear of the chase. Gangrel lead the group down a maze of halls before pushing them all into the basement and locking the door behind them. He placed his finger over his lips and tilted his head against the door to hear when their pursuers passed them. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, he finally pulled away and growled at Hewitt," You never told me that the vessel was Chrom's fucking girlfriend."

"Sorry about that. I'd forgotten about your little rivalry with Chrom," Her brother replied nonchalantly, only to receive death glares from both parties," What?"

Robin crossed her arms huffily," I suppose I should thank you for helping us, but seeing that you owed me-"

"I owe you nothing! You won the championship, didn't you?" Gangrel retorted before rolling his eyes," I cannot believe you are Mona. I guess your morals are still in the right place as they used to be, but you are far less mischievous."

The white haired girl's standoffish facade faltered," Wait, you used to know me?"

"Gangrel is my best friend," Hewitt answered casually, seemingly surprised by his sister's shocked expression," Did I not tell you that?"

Aversa cleared her throat, directing their attention back to her," As charming as this entire situation is, we are still trapped inside the school. Any ideas?"

Robin clenched her teeth in an attempt to keep herself from exploding and giving away their position. Who did this woman think she was? As much as Robin wanted to believe her half sister, Aversa had done nothing in the past to gain her trust," How do we know you won't turn us back in?"

"Pardon me for being rude, but we don't have time to waste on pointing fingers at each other," The woman hissed," Don't be ungrateful. I chose you over my religion and my safety. You'd better be worth it."

Hewitt stepped in between the two," She's right. We can talk later. Right now, we need to go!"

"Let's go through the sewers," Lucina suggested shakily," Can we get to them through here?"

Aversa narrowed her eyes at the stranger, but seeing that there wasn't a better option, she nodded," Follow me."

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It took half an hour to navigate their way through the sewer system, only exiting it once they reached the beach that Chrom took Robin to on their first place. Her heart longed for simpler times, but with the information she had just learned, she didn't know what to make of herself. Lucina seemed to take the news pretty hard as well, because she murmured something about calling Morgan before disappearing altogether. Aversa glared at her suspiciously, waiting until she was out of earshot to speak up," I don't trust her. Who exactly is she anyways? A relative of Chrom's?"

"She's my daughter," Robin rubbed her temples wearily and collapsed in the sand," She won't turn on us."

The white haired woman nodded thoughtfully, acting as if the information didn't surprise her," The prophet foretold that people from the future would come. I just didn't believe it."

Her younger sister sighed tiredly," I don't even want to know who the prophet is. I just want to go home."

"Do you even have a home?" The girl glared at Gangrel, who held his hands up in defense," From what I had heard, you never settled down. It surprised me to discover that the vessel dared to stay in one place for this long when a week was the longest she could previously stay somewhere."

"Is that going to become my life again?" Robin tugged on her sleeve nervously," But my friends..."

Aversa ran her hand through her hair," If we stay, there is a chance we will get hunted by the assassins. Are you willing to risk that, because I am not. I do not wish to throw my life away because you would miss your silly little boyfriend-"

"My life does not revolve around Chrom!" She defended," Yes, he is an important part of my life, but I have many friends that would miss me!"

"What would happen if they ever figured out your true purpose?" Gangrel pondered," How many of them would betray you for the sakes of their...what did you say?...ah yes, future children. You're responsible for that, aren't you? How dreadful-"

Hewitt slapped his friend upside the head," This is not the time to be making jabs at one another. What we need to do is come up with a plan."

"Beg pardon, Mother," The group turned to Lucina," Might I have a word with you alone?"

Aversa growled, but Robin ignored her half sister and followed her daughter further down the beach into privacy. It was a lot colder than it had been earlier that year, and while the beach was just as empty as it had been before, something unsettling lingered in the air. She frowned and tried to keep her mind off of it by talking to her daughter,"...Lucina. What is it you want to talk about?"

The blue haired girl kept her gaze fastened on the ground, refusing to make eye contact with anything," It's about Father. I have memories of him, you know. From when I was little. Before he...died."

"I see..."

"He was courageous, and kind, and everyone spoke fondly of him. People say he was brave up until the very end. I always yearned to know him better. And now that I do...," A small smile made its way onto her face,! I can see that the world will be robbed of a very great man," Without warning, her aura darkened,"...I won't allow that to happen."

Was Lucina worried about Chrom? Robin felt a twinge of annoyance, seeing that she was the one who had just been attacked, but she allowed her daughter to express herself. Maybe she was trying to finally open up about what happened to her in the future. Robin hoped that this was the case and smiled supportively," I understand. You love him...So do I."

"Mother, I...Please, forgive me..."

A million different sensations hit Robin when Lucina pointed her gun at her mother. Shock overtook her first, quickly followed by denial. This couldn't be happening! Did someone put her daughter up to this? Robin held her hands up slowly, trying not to scare the girl into doing something she'd regret,"...Lucina?"

Lucina squeezed her eyes shut and tried to keep her weapon steady," Stay where you are, Mother! I have no choice. I must kill you!"

"What?! What are you talking about?!" Her mother tried to take a step forward, but this only caused her daughter to backtrack even father away from her," Why are you doing this?"

"In my future, you...," She tried to remain strong, but her strong facade was breaking away bit by bit," You kill Father."

What did Lucina mean by that?! Why would she ever kill Chrom?! He was the one that gave her the life she had now! She was eternally grateful to him and would never consider harming a hair on his head. The closest she had ever come to hurting him was in her dream-

Her dream. That...that couldn't have been real, could it? How would she have been able to remember it if it hadn't happened yet? She just brushed it off as a hellish nightmare, but right now, her entire world was turning upside down. Robin felt tears slipping down her cheeks as she tried to deny it," No! That's insane! Why would I kill Chrom?"

Lucina winced when she saw her mother start to cry," I was not certain myself, until now...I knew he had been killed by his closest friend. Having witnessed your bond with him, I doubted it could be so...I mean, you two are married in the future! You love each other so much, But...today's events make it clear. You are at fate's mercy. I suspect it's you who takes Father's life and helps destroy the future..."

"Lucina, wait-"

The blue haired girl shook her head, trying to keep tears from escaping her eyes," I'm sorry, but I can't save you from your future anymore! But if Father is right, then we can still change our own fates. If this dark future is to be averted, sacrifices must be made," Lucina started shaking furiously, showing just how terrified of following through she was," I am sorry, mother! I know this is matricide, I...I know that..."

Was this how the rest of her life was supposed to play out? She didn't want Chrom to die, and if her death was the only way to prevent it...She took a deep breath and tried to calm her heart," Lucina, you don't have to-"

"Don't make it harder! It...will be swift and painless," She sobbed," If you hold any love for Chrom, then let this be done...," Lucina flinched when her mother gently approached her and pulled her into a loving hug," M-Mother?"

Robin tried to hide herself in the embrace, knowing that what she was about to say would haunt come back and haunt her forever,"...I love him as much as you, Lucina. But I can't give away my life when there's still some good left I can do. I've seen firsthand what grief death can bring. I know that sacrifice may seem like the heroic thing to do, but I can't rest easy knowing that there is still a monster out there that can hurt other people. You need to try and understand..."

"Perhaps I do...," Without warning, she threw her gun at Robin and pulled out a knife," If you are not going down without a fight, then-"

The white haired girl cut her off before she could speak any more," I would rather die than point a gun at my own daughter."

"Mother, he's going to DIE!" She sobbed desperately," Something must be done!"

Robin tried to stop her own tears and desperately grasped for anything that could keep her daughter from trying to start another fight," Lucina, you, Morgan, Chrom and I are family! And you only get one of those. Don't you understand? This isn't about me! This is about you!"

Lucina flinched, her features revealing her frustration," What are you talking about?!"

"You haven't been born yet, and neither has Morgan! How am I supposed to give you guys a second chance if I'm dead? I can't bare the thought of losing the two of you, even if you haven't been born yet! We are going to stay together, and we are going to survive!"

The blue haired girl ran her hand through her hair," That's all I want! But..."

"Lucina?" Robin gently laid her gun on the ground," I just want my family to be safe. If the time for destroying me comes after you and Morgan are born, then...I want you to kill me. But please...don't kill yourself."

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**When it came time for Lucina's judgement, I actually chose the path that was more selfish for this story. I tried writing the ending where she gives herself up to Lucina, but a few things came to my mind that would disprove that ending. For example, Robin has no idea how bad the Grimleal cult is and she hasn't seen them do anything drastic aside from killing Emmeryn. She's also a teenage girl and just as scared as Lucina when it comes to this situation; she wouldn't want to die. And finally, as stated above, neither Lucina or Morgan has been born yet. Will Lucina fight her anyways, or will Robin step down and sacrifice herself for her daughter? I'll let you guys try and figure that out (although it is pretty similar to the game, so I'm pretty sure you guys all know the outcome). Okay, so let's talk about the chapter! Of course Hewitt went with Robin. He wouldn't let her go alone, and he knows the Grimleal well enough to help her. Speaking of knowing Grimleal, Hewitt and Gangrel are actually pretty good friends! Do you remember a few chapters back when Hewitt said that he'd find a friend to stay with after they got released from jail? It was Gangrel! Aversa is also a lot more sympathetic towards Hewitt, but I'll explore her relationship with the others more in later chapters. Poor Chrom is getting anxiety due to the constant danger is family is put in. I was originally going to have Morgan go with Robin, but Lucina's dialogue worked better. Plus she would have a reason to try and murder her mother (that sounded worse than it should have). Brady reunited with Maribelle and Gregor! That was one of my favorite family meetings because they're so dorky! It's too cute! I'm not going to talk much about how they're planning to resurect Grima because I want you guys to explore that idea yourselves before it is blatantly revealed! I talked a lot about it in this chapter, though, so I think you guys will be on the right track. Review time!**

**Kit-Cat Star:**** Morgan almost ended up going with Robin, but I decided to have a switcharoo with him and Lucina. I did like having him go after her in the last chapter, though! Hewitt was the original one to go after her, but seeing that she was mad at both of them, I went with Morgan. Yup! They are the supports between the two! Good eye! Thank you for reviewing!**

**potatoman098:** **Yup! I had things fix themselves before drastically falling apart again! I'm interested in writing more of Dimitri and Novak's relationship, especially since Ruby is going to figure out who he is soon! I didn't know as many of you would catch the MorganxOwain supports! As you predicted, Levy is pretty similar to what female Morgan is, so I decided to give them their support (this also gives Owain an excuse to hang out with Noire more to help him cook)! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Golden-Lightning:**** Thank you! The christmas one should be coming soon, but there's going to be a plot line including a lot of the future children in between the two. If I can find all three versions cheap, I'll definitely get all of them! I may have said this before, but the one I want the most is Nohr. Which one do you want the most? Thank you for reviewing! **

**crowsandclouds: ****That's fine! I understand being busy and am happy to hear from you whenever you are available to do so! Yay for Lon'qu and Olivia finally getting together! It was about time! Realistically, though, they were planned to be one of the last couples to get together due to their shyness. The other ones are of the future children, so you might have to wait a bit to see where they go! Yeah...Ricken's parents mean well, but they don't understand why Dimitri would throw away his career for a kid. They'll come around eventually, don't worry! Oh good, I actually like writing the Dimitri/Novak/Ruby moments the best because they are new, but very complicated and fresh. Yup, papa Exalt is a goner. I had to kill him off eventually because he's not alive in the game. Good prediction! We're actually going to see more of those hooded figures soon. Thank you for reviewing! **

**DISCLAIMER: If you commented recently and I didn't respond, it's because I didn't see it. I'm only saying this because my comment thing went up from 187 to 188, but I can't find a new comment. I'm sorry if I didn't see it! Message me if this is you, and I'll reply to you in the next chapter! If this is just my wild imagination, then we're all good! So, as you probably know, the next chapter will pick up right where this one left off. See you guys next week! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	45. Chapter 45 The Ill Presage

**Hey guys! Happy Sunday! So, over the week I had only written about four pages. I wrote the other six in about an hour because of how much fun the characters I got to work with in the second half were! Anyways, this chapter refers to a lot of things mentioned in previous chapters. For example, this one starts right off where the last one ended, with Lucina threatening to kill her mother for the greater good. The five assassins that killed Henry's sister (and possibly someone else?) are also mentioned quite heavily throughout this chapter, and will also be quite prominent in the next one. The YLH is Ylisse's Last Hope, the orginization in the future that fought the Grimleal. Inigo's past with Walhart is also brought up, so see if you can remember what happened between them. I think that's it, so let's get into it (I don't know if that's actually a phrase of not. I'm not hip)! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem **

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It was taking everything Lucina had to keep her resolve. After seeing that her mother was somehow linked to the recreation of Grima, she knew that her duty was supposed to come before her wants. She tried so hard to keep that mindset, but the fact that her mother was fighting her on the subject want making it any easier.

It was only when Robin mentioned Morgan that the weight of the situation fully hit her. Sacrificing her mother would come hand in hand with sacrificing herself and her brother. She knew the pain of preventing her future self from having a good life would haunt her forever, but the fact that Morgan could never lead a normal life was the thing that sealed the deal for her,"...God dammit! I can't do it!" She threw her knife to the side, slowly being hit by thousands of different negative emotions. She had just tried to kill her own mother! She was a monster! Lucina clenched her fists and tried to stop the downpour of tears from flowing down her cheeks," I'm sorry, Mother. I'm so sorry! P-please forgive me!"

Robin smiled sadly and pulled her daughter into a comforting hug," My poor girl...there's nothing to forgive."

"Are you done, Lucina?" Both girls felt their hearts drop when they heard Chrom's voice from behind them.

"Father! I... I can explain!" Lucina immediately pulled apart from her mother and started scrambling to express herself while Morgan launched forward and hugged his mother tightly. His sister's babble died down when she saw the reunion, and her attempts to defend herself died off," I'm so sorry. I only wanted-"

Chrom placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and used his other hand to wipe away her tears," There is no need to say any more. You're not the only one who can eavesdrop. I heard every word," Robin cringed, hoping that he hadn't heard the part about her relation to the cult, but deep down she knew that it was only a pipe dream," Lucina, I know your heart is in the right place...But I trust Robin. You cannot shake my faith in her. Robin and I have held fast through good times and ill...," His eyes fell on his girlfriend, and despite the anxiety she had caused him that day, he managed a small smile," We swore to be two halves of a greater whole. You underestimate the strength of those ties, the bonds we share. I believe in them more than some foretold destiny."

"This is easier to say when you haven't seen it yourself..."

The blue haired boy held his ground," Lucina, aren't our ties stronger here now than they were in your future? You said so yourself. In this flow of time we are bound tighter than ever, you and I. Not just as father and daughter...But as friends. We can change things—we already have...and we will again."

Lucina looked between her two parents and nodded, desperately hoping that they were right,"...Very well, Father. Mother I...I hope someday you will find it in your heart to forgive me...," Robin took one of her free hands in hers and squeezed it gently, telling her that it was okay," And I pray...That is, I trust the both of you will prove me wrong. That the future will crack and fall apart before our family bond ever does."

"Yeah!" Morgan agreed chipperly," Nothing's going to bring us down!"

"Well look who it is!" The family turned to find the other three ex-Grimleal members approach them, lead by by none other than Gangrel," I haven't seen good ol' princey in ages! You're just as hopelessly pathetic as I remember you."

Chrom's eyes widened at the sight of Aversa and Gangrel," What the hell are you doing here?!" He angrily spun to face Hewitt," Did you bring them here? I knew you were trouble-"

"Relax," The dark haired boy interrupted," They're on our side."

The two former Grimleal members flinched at his statement," Hey, we never said anything about joining your cutesy little band!" Aversa pouted," That would make us even bigger targets!"

"Good, we don't want you-" Chrom started, but a pointed look from Hewitt cut him off.

Robin's brother crossed his arms and tried to reason," Look, I know that you guys have been enemies in the past, but we need to stick together. Believe it or not, you'll be targeted more if you go off on your own. If you're with the Shepherds, we'll have your backs and you'll be less likely to be attacked," He held out his hands towards the two," Please join us."

The pair exchanged suspicious looks, almost as if they were challenging the other to go first. Much to the surprise of everyone, Aversa was the first one to shake his hand," Heh. Even after all we've been through, you'd still have me at your side...Very well, then. They say politics makes strange bedfellows, but surely this war trumps all, no?"

Gangrel scoffed at the exchange," What? You think some pathetic peer pressure will get me to put a price on my head? Bah! I'm smarter than that-"

"For Gods sake, Gangrel, join the fucking team," Hewitt groaned, surprising everyone with his laid back tone. Robin didn't doubt that the two were good friends, but the idea made her question his previous statement about knowing her. Were they friends once as well?

She brushed the thought off when the redhead huffily to his friend's hand," Fine, but only because I have nothing better to do."

Hewitt chuckled," It's good to have you onboard. All we have to do is convince the others to trust you two."

"Sounds like a blast," Aversa spat, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Her brother nudged her playfully," Come on. Let's get moving before they discover we left though the sewers."

Everyone nodded in agreement and turned to leave, but Robin gently took her boyfriend's elbow," Can I talk to you for a moment?" When she received the odd looks from the others, she clarified," Alone?"

Chrom waited until everybody else had disappeared to his car before speaking up," If this is about what happened with Lucina-"

"It's not...I just thought that you should know that I'm...somehow..."

His face slowly became more solemn," You're the one that kills me in their future."

She hugged herself tightly," Doesn't that scare you?"

"Why would it?" Chrom stepped forward and rubbed her arms comfortingly," I trust you."

The white haired girl turned away from his embrace, avoiding his hurt look," It scares me," When she saw the confusion on his face, she elaborated," They said I was going to resurrect Grima. He kept saying weird things, like how he needed my blood for it."

"That could never happen-"

"But it did!" Robin flipped back around," In their future, Grima was in power. It was all my fault...Somehow, I was weak enough to give in to them...," She clenched her fists," I'm not going to be weak this time around."

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It was easy to say that the only Shepherd happy to see Gangrel and Aversa was Emmy. She almost went to greet them, but Owain sensed the tension and held her back. The rest of the, tried to keep their distance, and even some of the originals sent them glares. Even Henry, who was usually cheerful to everybody, sent Gangrel his creepiest smile," If you try and pull another stunt, I'll use real poison."

Hewitt rolled his eyes at everyone's distrust, obviously unaware of the intense history between the two groups and went to explain," Look, I know that you all have a rocky past. I'm here to tell you that none of that matters anymore because the stakes have been raised. Your lives are in danger if you choose to stay in this meeting. If you wish to avoid fighting, then I welcome you to leave right now," A few of the lesser known band members quickly evacuated the room, avoiding the glares some of the others were giving them," Alright, so now we've got the serious members, I'm going to tell you what's going to happen; there is a group of Assassins known as the Ill Presage. Our mother was killed by them, Aversa's mother was murdered by them-"

"They killed my sister," Henry spoke up shakily, earning a small hug from Lissa to help comfort him.

The dark haired boy frowned, seemingly knowing there was a deeper meaning to his confession," I'm so sorry, but I'm here to tell you that they're going to start coming after us. We need to destroy them before that happens-"

"I know how to fight," Lucina stood up, filled with determination," I was part of the YLH, also known as the army that fought the Grimleal in the future. I can help."

"I was too," Inigo nearly blurted," I'll gladly join the fight to protect those closest to me."

"Wait!" Olivia cried. Her face burned bright red when she realized that she had just yelled, but she continued on to protect her son," Y-You just healed f-from your l-last injury," Lucina's eyes widened with worry, and Inigo had to actively avoid her frantic stare," I-I don't w-want you t-to get hurt a-again."

Her son smiled softly at her and tried to reassure her doubts," Don't worry about me, mother. I've dealt with much worse before. I can handle a group of punks, especially if they're threatening you guys."

"They're not going to be alone either," Anders added, ignoring the death glare his twin was giving him," You can count Nate and I in."

Gerome gruffly crossed his arms in agreement," I will not let the past repeat itself."

"Hold on a minute!" Everyone in the room turned to face Tanith, whose face was extremely pale. Her eyes had bags underneath them and she appeared exhausted. Robin gulped when she realized that this was the first time they had seen her before the incident involving Walhart," I've seen violence up close, and I know how haunting it can be. We can't send out children in to try and fight notorious murderers! Call the police!"

"What good did they do?" Say'ri mumbled regretfully. The previous incident had obviously taken a toll on her as well," They couldn't save Cobalt. They couldn't find my brother. Honestly, I'm not sure if they'd even believe us."

"She has a point," Owain commented," The police didn't believe Chrom's father when he was talking about them. I doubt they'd believe us."

As much as the Shepherds wanted to disagree, they knew that the children were right. The police would either think they were lying or laugh at them, despite the fact that Flavia was the chief and Basilio was still in the hospital. Lissa was the first to voice her distress," What if one of you gets hurt?"

"Brady and I learned a lot from you guys in the future," Emmy commented," We can be there if something goes wrong."

Libra frowned," Can we not offer our services as well?"

"We disembarked from the future to safeguard the Shepherds," Laurent answered solemnly," Any one of our assembly would be jovial to shield you from harm with our lives."

"Don't think about stopping us either," Cynthia added confidently," We'd just sneak off without go your approval. If anything, we'd be in even more danger."

Morgan nodded in agreement," As long as we have a plan, we'll be safe."

Chrom stared at the children, considering everything they had just brought up to the table. As much as he wanted to help, he had to admit the only combat training he had was from boxing and paintball. These kids were specially trained for situations like this, and as much as he hated to admit it, they were more mature than most of their parents. He turned his attention back to Morgan," You mentioned a plan?"

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Everything was set into motion. That night, the children were going to seek out the five Assassins and destroy the threat before it could hurt anyone else. With the information that Aversa provided about their enemies, the children were going to be split into groups," So, the first man we are up against goes by the name of Bovis," The former Grimleal member explained," He specializes in long range attacks, so we need a group that can get in and out quickly."

"Everyone knows that_ I'm_ the fastest person in our group," Severa bragged," Naturally I'd be perfect for the job."

"I'll help her!" Anders volunteered eagerly before winking cheekily at the girl," Don't worry; I've got your back."

Severa's upper lip curled up at the thought of partnering with the redhead, but seeing that she had no other option, she tried to gain the upper hand," Ugh, fine. I expect you to keep up with me."

"Gladly."

Nate rolled his eyes at his brother, but Aversa cut him off before he could complain," Good. Once Bovis is out of the way, the others will split up to look for him. This is where the plan will shift into five different focuses; four offenses and one defense. The one who will find you first is Simia, and she is very fast and skilled. She also uses a sword as her weapon of choice. We need a group equally as skilled to pull it off."

Noire stood up straighter," I-I can d-defeat her...I'm sure of it."

"Fear not, Noire!" Owain burst over dramatically," I shall help defeat this fearsome Simia with my trusted weapon, Mystletainn!"

"A mixture of range and offense would work well together," Lucina confirmed thoughtfully, which gave Aversa the okay to continue her plan.

"Next up is Mus. While he is generally very slow, he is incredibly strong. Don't underestimate his power."

"That sounds like a challenge I'd be willing to take," Kjelle smiled," Yarne and I are more than capable of taking him out-"

"Wait, what?!" The boy's eyes widened to the size of saucers," I can't fight well! I blank out, remember? How do you expect me to help when I'm curled up in the corner crying!?"

The aqua haired girl sent him a swift glare that cut off his rambling," You asked me to make you tougher, this is part of the deal. Can I trust you to have my back?"

Yarne grimaced, eventually giving in to her logic," Of course. I'll be there for you."

"As will I," Laurent volunteered," My skill-set may come to some use to you two."

Aversa folded her hands, silently commanding the attention of the entire room. Something about the sudden change of mood made the the hair on the back of the kids' necks stand up," The last two members are going to be the hardest to kill. Tigris is both strong and cunning, so there is no "having each other's backs" on this one. Both of you need to be equally skilled and confident enough to destroy him before he destroys you."

"Nate is one of the most skilled guys I know," Anders offered up," He might be able to help...that is, if he's willing."

The black haired boy narrowed his eyes at his brother," Stop volunteering me for things."

"You didn't seem to have a problem with changing the future earlier; what's stopping you now?"

Nate looked like he was about to murder his brother, but much to the surprise of everyone, he backed down," Fine. Gerome, are you willing to be on my team? I don't trust anyone else aside from my brother."

The dark haired boy nodded," It is done."

"That leaves the leader of the group, a man known as Gallus. The trick in defeating him comes with teamwork as well, for he is equally specialized up close and out of range. Let your guard down for a minute, and he'll make his move. Many of us know him for his tendency to decapitate his prey," Aversa's gaze fell on Lucina," I believe that with focus and trust in your partner, you will be able to defeat him."

Lucina knew that she was going to have to defeat the leader, so her assignment didn't come as a surprise to her," I will try my best."

"As will I," Everyone turned to face Inigo, who had moved to stand by the blue haired girl's side," We know each other's dynamic. With our combined efforts, we can eliminate the threat."

The girl opened her mouth to protest, but Aversa cut her off," That leaves everyone else to protect the healers and go in if one of you are killed to finish the job," Some of the kids cringed at that, but they all knew that complaining would cause them more misery in the long run," Now get some sleep. It's going to be a long night."

Inigo turned to leave, but the hand on his shoulder kept him from moving on. Despite not turning around, he already knew that it was Lucina. The rest of the children filed out of the room, leaving the two alone. Once the door shut behind them, his friend finally spoke up," Show me."

"Show you...what?"

She spun him around to face her, despite the fact that he was almost a head taller than her. He would've thought her attempts to hold his attention was cute if it didn't come with her anxious gaze," Your mother mentioned you had injuries. Show me them."

His heart dropped in his stomach as memories of how he obtained the flooded back. Despite the fact that Walhart was dead and couldn't hurt her, something made him incredibly easy. Maybe it was because he didn't want to see how she'd react when she saw just how bad they were. A small, persistent voice in his head kept nagging him that he just didn't want to show weakness to the girl he idolized, but he pushed that thought deep into the back of his mind. Thoughts like that weren't going to get him anywhere," They're just mere scratches," Inigo lied, hating how her face became increasingly more worried," They're long gone now."

"_Inigo_," Lucina's voice almost came out as a beg, pleading him to be honest with her. He bit his lip, knowing that her persistence wasn't going to wear off. If only she knew how ugly they really were. As soon as she laid eyes on them, she'd tell him to stay back and rest and pick someone else to help her defeat Gallus. The first person she'd go to would definitely be Novak, and if that happened, she would be out of his reach. Everyone fell for Novak's charms and he didn't even have to try! Even when Inigo started being as flirtatious as the boy, he didn't get nearly as many admirers," Inigo? What's wrong?" The brunette was pulled from his thoughts by Lucina, whose eyes were wide with dread. Something told him that she already knew how bad they were, but still wanted to see for herself anyways. This thoroughly confused him, wondering why she would want to see something she hated. Her voice became increasingly more desperate as she tried one last time to sway him," Please...I need to see what happened."

Inigo's lips pressed together into a tight line," You're not going to like what you see."

"Maybe, but I need to see it."

He stared at her miserably for a few more seconds before unbuttoning his shirt and pulling it off, revealing the array of injuries scattering his chest and stomach. Lucina's hand instinctively moved to cover her mouth in horror, scanning his body before hesitantly moving closer to observe it. Her fingers hovered over the yellowing bruises covering his stomach before inching her way up to the brand still embedded into his chest," W-When did this happen?"

"Lucina-"

"Please tell me."

The brunette took a deep breath, trying to keep his heartbeat steady as he recalled the day," It was the last time you saw me before the hospital. It was before I disappeared. It was-"

"-when we left you behind at the school," The girl finished. When what may have happened finally hit her, she stumbled backwards and hugged herself tightly," Walhart found you, didn't he?"

"Luci..."

"Oh gods," She backed away even further from him when he took a step towards her," I could've been there! I might've been able to prevent it-"

He shook his head," No, Lucina. He would've hurt you too-"

"I should've stayed behind instead. I should never have left you! Maybe then I'd be the one with the scar and-"

Inigo advanced forward and grabbed her arms before she could put anymore distance between them, keeping his grip firm, yet gentle at the same time," _No_. I don't regret anything that happened that day. I'd let them cut me open before I'd let them lay a finger on you."

She winced at the seriousness in his tone, desperately wishing that he wouldn't say things like that. Sacrifice was the thing that made her lose her little brother and almost lose her mother. Yet something about hearing him say it made her insides churn even more than usually would have. Lucina pulled her eyes away from his and flinched when they fell on an ugly scar embedded into his shoulder," Inigo..."

He seemed to know what she was referring to, because he managed to lighten up a little bit," I had to take him down before he could hurt my parents or Levy. My dad managed to kill that dastard, but not before he managed to graze me."

"That is not a graze!" Lucina scowled," It looks like he stabbed you!"

"Well..."

"_He stabbed you?!_" The blue haired girl shook her head in denial, trying to back away out of his grasp," No, there's no way you can fight! You'll get even more hurt! What if something happens to you? I'd never forgive myself! I'd never-"

Inigo watched as she became increasingly more and more panicked," Luci, I can still fight! It happened weeks ago! The wound is nearly healed now-"

"Don't you get it?!" She burst," I know you can still fight! You still fought in the YLH when you had a broken ankle! You won't let anything stop you!"

"I don't see what the problem is, then-"

"The problem is that I could lose you!" Without warning, tears started to streak down her cheeks," I can't lose you, Inigo! I already lost both my parents and my little brother! You became the only constant thing in my life, and losing you would mean that I've lost everything! It's already bad enough to that all of my other friends are willing to give their lives for me! Please, for my sake, be selfish! Don't fight! I can't...I need..."

"Luci...," He gently pulled her into a soft hug, trying to ignore how much it broke his heart to hear her sob. He wanted to tell her he felt the exact same way, and that was why he was fighting. He cared so much about her, and the very idea of losing her kept him awake at night.

Tears soaked her cheeks and his chest as she continued to cry," I m-might lose my m-mother again. She...I-I...a-and my d-dad...M-Morgan already d-died for m-me once...Please d-don't die for me...Inigo, p-please...d-don't d-die for m-me..."

The brunette tightened his hug and started to gently rock her back and forth," Shh...it'll be okay, Luci. I'm not going anywhere, and neither are your family. We're here to stay this time. Besides, you can't get rid of me that easily," He smiled playfully," Shh...don't worry Luci. Everything is going to turn out alright; you'll see. Just let it all out. I'm here for you."

She nodded tearfully and, much to his surprise, snuggled closer to him. It took Inigo a full five seconds to realize what was going on before responding with the same gesture. He wanted to make her feel safe, even if it turned out that she never returned his feelings. He tried not to get his hopes up and rested his head on top of hers, holding her as she tried to restrain herself," It'll be okay, Luci. I promise."

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"Hey Severa, wait up!"

The olive haired girl stopped in her tracks and turned to face Anders, who was racing to catch up with her. She tapped her toe impatiently, waiting until he arrived to turn back around and continue walking," What do you want? Are you here to discuss battle plans?"

He shrugged," Not really. I just came because I like talking to you."

Severa rolled her eyes," Gawds, you're annoying. Don't you have something better to do?"

"Better than talking to you?" The redhead grinned," That's unlikely."

She blinked a few times before regaining her composure," I know what you're doing. You're flirting with me! I don't have time for romance, especially when it's coming from stupid dastards like you who only want me for my body."

Anders pondered for a few seconds, letting her words sink in before responding," You don't get complimented very often, do you?"

"What?!" The olive haired girl tried to keep the blush off of her face as she huffed," I get flirted with all the time! What, do you think that people don't like me? Even if they didn't, I wouldn't care! I especially don't care what you of all people think of me, just in case you were wondering."

"That's too bad-"

"Yup, so you can just walk away now-"

"-because I care about you," Severa suddenly came to a dead stop, causing the boy to stumble a little bit and turn around to face her stoic self," I was right, then."

She narrowed his eyes at him," Look, I don't know what type of game you're playing at, but it's not funny. Let's just come up with a battle plan and never talk again."

"But I like talking to you-"

"Shut up!"

Anders chuckled, unsure of she was truly angry or just incredibly flustered," Heh, you're pretty cute."

Severa threw her hands up in exasperation and started to walk away, indifferent to whether of not he followed. When it became apparent that he was indeed following her again, she picked a topic that would hopefully avoid all of his shameless flirting," When we fight Bovis, we're going to hack him into tiny bits. Aim for either the neck or the lungs so that he can't make any noise while he's dying. As soon as he's down, we'll go back to our base and wait for the others to show up. If we see anyone else in trouble on the way-"

"We'll help them," He finished, smiling at her annoyed glare," Sounds like a good plan, partner."

"Ugh, don't call me that."

"Why not?"

"Because you're not my partner!"

"Of course I am," Anders smirked," We're on the same team for this mission, which makes us partners by default."

Severa rolled her eyes and murmured," Out of all the Shepherds, I had to get stuck with this guy," After making sure he didn't hear her, she grabbed him by the collar and dragged him towards a training spot," Come on, we need to practice before tonight. Don't even think about trying to sneak off."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

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Owain was getting ready alongside Noire when someone shyly tapped him on the back," Erm, Owain?"

He turned around a lot up when he saw Levy," Ah, it is my fated partner from across time! I have not yet cooked you the meal of legends, but-"

"Don't worry, I didn't come here for that," The purple haired girl rubbed her arm nervously," I just came by to tell you to be careful tonight, and...," She opened her mouth to continue the thought, but the words died in her mouth. Eventually, she just settled for a supportive comment," I know you can defeat them, but I also know that fighting is dangerous. Just come home safe, okay?"

The white haired boy smiled," Of course! With Mystletainn to protect me, Noire to guide me, and your faith in my skills, I will defeat the treacherous Simia! Once the enemy is defeated, I shall come back and produce the most magnificent meal you have ever consumed!"

Levy couldn't hold back the giggle that escaped her lips," O-Okay. Good luck tonight!"

With that said, she burst out of the room, leaving the two alone again. Owain was about to return to his practice when Noire spoke up," Since when do you know how to cook?"

He nearly dropped his weapon and childishly defended himself," I know how to cook!" His confidence faltered slightly," I just don't know how to cook well..."

The brunette smiled cheerfully," I can help! I love cooking! Plus, I want to help you impress your girl."

"Really? That's be gr-Wait, what?! Levy's not my girl! I-I mean, she is a girl, but she's not my girl yet-I mean-" He glared at his friend while she laughed at him," Don't tell her, or I'll tell Priam that you like him!"

Almost like someone flicked a light switch, her face paled," Y-You wouldn't! He w-would never t-talk to me a-again!"

The two scowled at each other defensively before turning back to their weapons," We'll talk about this later."

"O-Or never."

"Never is good too."

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**So, this is one of our first children heavy chapters! It was really fun to write them interacting together! But, I'll talk about that in a little bit. Let's start at the beginning; Lucina couldn't kill her mother, and even though Chrom knows about Robin, he still trusts her not to kill him. That will be important later on in the story. Gangrel and Aversa begrudgingly joined the Shepherds (you see, there was a reason I didn't kill them off when I could have), and while most of the Shepherds don't trust them, they sure came in handy for giving out information! See if you can recognize who the five assassins are, because they are from the game. I actually paired up people according to who they were friends with and who they were fighting against, which was fun because it was just like the playing the game! Lucina and Inigo had a really heavy moment that revealed a lot about both of them. I'll let you interpret what you will so that I don't accidentally give away any spoilers! Oh my goodness, Anders and Severa was really fun to write! I realized that they have a great dynamic together because Severa acts sort of like Nate and Anders noticed it. I won't tell you anything else about his intentions, because we're going to explore that deeper later in the story. Finally, we had a cute moment between Owain, Levy, and Noire! Review time!**

**MissShane12:** **Sorry I didn't get to respond to you the last chapter! My story wouldn't let me see my new reviews for a few days, so I couldn't tell who said what. Anyways, it's good to hear from you again! I'm glad you still like the story! Dimitri is one of my favorite OCs, and him fainting was like icing on top of the cake! Yeah, Dimitri is growing as a parent! I'm glad you like the twins as well! I love their dynamic with each other and other people, mainly because Anders is very positive and tries to find a simple way out of things while Nate is a pessimist and very hardheaded. Heh, I thought of the murder subplot a while ago (it was almost right after they got out of jail), but it fit in the best here. Thank you for reviewing!**

**Kit-Cat Star:**** Funny thing about that scene...the first time I played it, I actually didn't sacrifice myself because I didn't want my character to die...hehe...oops. I can understand that Lucina (and possibly Morgan?) was already born in the game, but they are definitely non existent in this story. Yay, I'm glad you liked that choice! It was like a family roadtrip, except that they were separate for most of the chapter and it didn't really end well for them...oh well. Aversa is going to grow a lot as a character if I can work it in, so look forward to seeing that! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Moonlights Glow:** **That's okay! I'm happy that you've continued to read with your busy schedule, and I'm glad to hear from you whenever you have the time! It's kind of sad that marching season is over in the game, but it had to happen eventually. Anyways, I'm starting to doubt that they'd have time to do it with all of the drama that's going on in their lives. I'm sorry that you guys didn't go to state. I'm sure that you were a great band and put on your best performance, though! That is clearly shown if you were that close to going! Besides that, you guys had an awesome score! The Shepherds actually almost didn't win, but I decided that them winning would be the equivalent for them winning the war in Valm. I always focus on colorguard too, don't worry! I love looking at their technique and silks (I have silk envy)! That's really cool! I've always wanted to do winterguard, but my schedule is too busy to do it. That, and my school band teacher sort of sucks and wouldn't even let us go to regionals...that's besides the point, though! Story talk time! I actually planned for certain characters to die (Emmeryn, Walhart, ect), but I really wanted Gangrel and Aversa to come back and redeem themselves! I'm glad that it worked out. Haha, I understand! Every time I write Desdemona, I have to cringe a little bit. The name doesn't fit her at all. It's no wonder everyone started calling her Robin! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Golden-Lightning:**** Thank you! In the future, I want all three games, but I'm going to have to wait a little bit for that. Maybe I'll get one game with my own money and the other two for my birthday? I don't know. I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I think that part of the reason I'm leaning more towards Nohr may be because of Inigo and Owain, but I'm not quite sure yet. I haven't settled on a new husband yet. Thank you for the review!**

**crowsandclouds:**** Haha, I know! Writing that part was like a punch in the gut to me (it was like a painful reminder that the story is slowly coming to a close (PS, I got somewhat emotional while writing that last sentence)). I'm dreading the moment I have to introduce Grima, because that's when the story is going to get really heavy and really close to the end. Oh, I'm sorry about the spoilers! I hate it when things like that happen, although I usually set myself up for it. The assassins are going to be in the next chapter, so be prepared! Thank you for reviewing!**

**So, I may have said this a few times already, but the next chapter is going to be the attack on the Ill Presage (the five assassins that are killing everybody). There might be some additional drama in the chapter if there is room for it (I'm not sure how long it's going to be, but each team has to defeat their enemy, so that's at least five different sections). With this, though, there is also the assumption that adult Shepherds will not be in the chapter very much (I don't know if they'll be in it at all). Don't worry, they'll make a reappearance soon! I just haven't played that much with the future children, so we'll get to dive a little bit deeper into their personalities. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	46. Chapter 46 Five Assassins

**Hey guys! Alright, so I'm going to start off by saying this is probably the first chapter with real violence in it. Seriously, this chapter is somewhat gorey. It's also incredibly complex compared to some of the other stuff I've written, especially when it comes to Nate's part of the story. I'm also going to say (I'll repeat this at the bottom too) I am not able to view my comments from the last chapter. Yes, there is the possibility that no one posted anything, but I logged out and posted something on it and nothing showed up. I'm not sure how to fix this or what's going on with it, but I'll talk more about that below. Okay, so in this chapter, Severa and Anders are a team, Owain and Noire are a team, Kjelle, Yarne, and Laurent are a team, Nate and Gerome are a team, and Lucina and Inigo are a team. Alright, let the games begin! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

The night was illuminated by the full moon reflecting off of the cool, white snow. Snowflakes fluttered lazily to the ground, building upon the already ankle deep snow. Severa sat in her perch nearby Plegia Academy, blowing hot air into her hands in a vain attempt to warm them. Aversa had informed them that Validar didn't leave his office when he had failed in some way, and she was positive that the Ill Presage would be roaming the grounds to guard him. All they had to do was wait for Bovis to show himself.

Much to Severa's relief, Anders had chosen not to talk as much as he did earlier that day. Instead, he carefully watched the snow fall onto the ground, keeping his stare constant for a few seconds before moving onto the next snowflake. The change in him was so drastic from his chatty self before that it was starting to unnerve her," Hey, shouldn't you being paying attention to the plan?"

Anders hummed," Don't worry, I am."

"Really? It looks like you're more focused on the snowflakes," She grumbled irritably.

She expected him to deny her statement, but much to her surprise, she earned a weak chuckle," I suppose you're right. It's been a while since I've seen snow."

Severa crossed her arms, curious but not trying to show it," What is that supposed to mean?"

"It's nothing," The redhead finally pried himself away from the weather and offered her a small smile," So, have you seen any sign of Bovis yet?"

She shook her head, earning yet another chuckle from him," What? What's so funny?"

The boy shrugged," If you haven't seen a sign from him, why are you so insistent on what I'm focused on? Do you want me to give you all of my attention, because I gladly would."

Great. He was flirting again. Severa should've seen this coming. In a vain attempt to change the subject, she turned her attention back to the snow," I don't know why you care so much about what the weather is like. I hated snow, and I still do."

Anders lips formed into a tight line," Who said I liked snow?"

"You just did!" She replied in annoyance," You said it's been a long time since you last saw snow-"

"That's true, but never in that sentence did I say I liked it," He smirked in amusement as her face grew continuously more red," You don't like being told you're wrong."

"Does anybody?" She snapped back.

Once again, he shrugged," It depends on the person and the subject."

Severa was slowly beginning to realize that the more time she spent with this guy, the more confusing he became. One moment he was flirting with her and the next he was pondering extremely deep emotions. She hated that he thought he knew her. He didn't know anything about her, yet he was sauntering around and poking fun at her. He ignored facing his own faults and acted like a perfect angel all the time, making spending time with him even more infuriating. It was unfair," Look, I don't know what you're playing at, but no one can be as morally sound as you."

This comment seemed to gain his interest," You're right, but I believe that my purpose is to balance out those who are not morally sound."

"Is that supposed to be a jab-"

"Not at all," For the first time, Anders let his face fall," It's more for the sake of my brother. He prefers the easier way of doing things, and most of the time, that's not the best plan. You, on the other hand, also seem to have some sort of baggage you're carrying around," The redhead tilted his head to get a better look at her face," Have you ever talked to anyone about it?"

She felt dread swirl in her stomach as she tried to divert his question back to him," What about you, Hun? What's your baggage?"

The twin stared at her for a few seconds before flickering his gaze back to the snow," The last time it snowed, my mom was killed. She said she'd come back for us that night, but she never did. It was only in the morning that Aunt Lissa came for us and told us what really happened. We were only twelve at the time, but I remember it like yesterday," He slowly pulled his eyes away from the snow to look Severa in the eyes," She was captured by the Grimleal and tortured until she died. They knew she was a close friend of Aunt Robin's, and they really wanted to know where she was hiding. We...," Without warning, he started choking up," They didn't even let us see her body. It destroyed Nate, but I knew that if I didn't get over it quickly, he would start to head down a deeper path," His eyes trailed off to the right, eventually falling on something in the distance that made his eyebrows scrunch up slightly. Before Severa could question him, though, he spoke up again,"...That's my baggage-"

He was cut off by an arrow flying into his stomach. Anders's eyes widened in horror, and his hand cupped the area around his wound, trying to still the blood," S-Severa," He gritted through his teeth," L-Leave me...behind...Get...h-help...," His eyes suddenly rolled to the back of his head, causing his body to fall from its perch in the tree and land roughly on the ground.

At any other time, the shock would have paralyzed Severa. But the fact that someone else close to her was about to die forced her into action; the girl pulled out both of her knives and jumped from her spot onto the man, effectively knocking his bow out of his hands. He struggled against her grip, using one hand to keep her from cutting open his neck and the other to try and pull an arrow from his quiver. Just as he got a good grip on the weapon, Severa took the advantage and stabbed his throat. She kept her hold on him firm him, watching as his body struggled to gain air. She only stepped off of him when his eyes turned dull and he went still.

The olive haired girl hopped off of her position and bolted to her partner's side, breaking one side of the arrow off so that he would be easier to carry. She tried to ignore the blank look in his eyes and the blood soaking from his body into the snow, intend focusing on yanking her cost off and using it to cover the wound the best she could. Once that was done, she quickly looped her arms around his legs and hoisted him onto her back," Come on, don't give in yet!" She whispered, partially to herself and partially to him as she sprinted back in the direction of their base.

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For some reason, Noire had a really bad feeling about that night. It might have something to do with the fact that the last time she fought she was seriously injured, but she felt that there was something more. Why did these figures sound so familiar to her? She knew that she had heard of them from somebody, but the fact that something in her head was trying to warn her about these people made her incredibly uneasy.

Owain rose his eyebrow in confusion, watching as she became increasingly more wary," Are you alright, Noire?"

"Y-Yeah," She gave him a halfhearted smile," I g-guess I'm just n-nervous, that's all."

"Why are you nervous?" The white haired boy nudged her playfully," If I remember correctly, you took down a group of bandits all by yourself a few weeks ago!"

The girl bit her lip," B-But I passed out, remember?"

He shrugged nonchalantly," Yeah, but only after you finished the job. You were also outnumbered, so it's understandable that you were fatigued. Plus, from what I've heard, you kicked their-"

"_From what you've heard_?" Noire furrowed her eyebrow," Who told you all this?"

"Priam. He's pretty obsessed with you," Her friend chuckled when her face burned bright red," You know that he really likes you, right? Like, likes you likes you."

The brunette covered her face in a vain attempt to hide her blush," I-I'm sure t-that he's j-just fooling a-around..."

"Sure he is," Owain snickered. He opened his mouth to tease her some more, but the sound of a twig snapping cut him off. He pulled Noire's hands off of her face and motioned for her to draw her weapon and be quiet.

The only warning of the attack that they got was the barely audible sound of someone exhaling before they launched forward and sliced at the two. The pair jumped out of the way just in the knick of time, splitting up to confuse the female assassin. She quickly decided that Noire would be the easier topic, diving towards the girl with her sword. Noire yanked two arrows out of her quiver and shot at the swordswoman, one hitting her left shoulder and the other skimming her cheek.

The woman hissed and yanked the arrow out of her arm before soaring forward for another attack. Before she could land a hit, Owain dived in and pushed her out of the way, blocking it with his own sword. The woman jumped back, babying her shoulder for a few seconds before coming back for a second attack.

She swung down at Owain's head, becoming more and more infuriated every time that he blocked her attacks. This only caused her to attack faster and harsher, smirking when she noticed that the boy was starting to become fatigued. She swung her weapon underneath his, knocking his sword out of his hands.

Simia leered confidently and moved in to stab him, but an arrow swiftly soared past her, cutting her throat open in the process. Owain sighed in relief when the battle ended and moved to pick up his sword, tiredly patting Noire on the shoulder," Thanks."

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Yarne had been unfortunate enough to not own a weapon from the future, due to the fact that his mother had only taught him the ancient fighting style of the Taguel clan. While that did come in handy, everyone was incredibly insistent that he should bring a weapon. Unfortunately, the only weapon left available was a jackhammer," Um, Kjelle?"

The aqua haired girl looked up from her own weapon, a spear she had made in the future," What?"

"Is it, uh...Is it supposed to be this heavy?"

Kjelle glanced at his makeshift weapon," It's solid steel lined with lead weight," When she caught his confused look, she rolled her eyes,"...What do you think?"

Yarne pouted," But it's impossible to move it! Don't you have anything lighter?"

"If it wasn't heavy, there'd be no point. Hence the "weapon" part."

"An armament does not need to be buoyant to be effective," Laurent pointed out, only to receive a glare from the younger girl.

Yarne disregarded the conversation between the two (mainly because he had no idea what Laurent was talking about) and tried one last time to swing the hammer into the tree," Hnnnnngh!" The weapon swung up, but stopped in the air and dropped back onto the ground in defeat,"...I'm not going anywhere. I can't even fight! I know that a good weapon means good protection, but I'm a sitting duck here! This is crazy!"

Kjelle pursed her lips in annoyance," So you're giving up. Not ten minutes later, you're surrendering like a coward. Gods, YOU'RE the one who asked for this. It's like all you're capable of is complaining!"

The boy shrank under her disapproval," But I didn't mean to...I'm sorry."

The aqua haired girl crossed her arms," That's not good enough. You said you wanted to become tougher, didn't you? Look, you get used to fighting with that first, then you can use a normal weapon in actual combat. Suddenly, you feel light as a feather! I imagine it would help you keep calm, too."

The brunette nodded in agreement before catching himself and shaking himself out of it. What was he thinking? He couldn't fight with this thing! He should just leave now-

Yarns cringed. If he left now, it'd just be Kjelle and Laurent. While he was positive that Kjelle could handle herself, Laurent was still somewhat new in combat. He was mainly there to make sure things went according to plan and to cover for him he if ran away. As much as they avoided saying exactly that, Yarne knew it was true. He exhaled and tried to grasp for some source of approval from the two,"...You're right. And I'm sorry. I'll work on getting used to the weight."

"That's all I wanted to hear," He was rewarded with one of her rare smiles," Just stay optimistic and you'll have no trouble."

"Apart from being unable elevate your weapon, that is," Laurent smirked, gaining yet another glare from Kjelle and a grimace from Yarne," I only verbalize the factuality of the situation."

The aqua haired girl narrowed her eyes at the older boy," He's not going to improve if you constantly bring him down," She defended," Look, we need to work together if we're going to defeat-"

"Me?"

The three whipped around to face the largest man they had ever laid eyes on. The fabric of his jackets clung desperately to his large muscles, threatening to rip at any second. He stood at least two heads taller than Kjelle, and was three times as big. The most unnerving part about him was the fact that he didn't even hold a weapon. Was this Mus, the man Aversa had warned them about? She didn't mention that he wasn't a giant! Why didn't she tell them everything about their threat? Kjelle tightened her grip on her weapon.

Laurent immediately jumped forward with a handful of knock out dust, but one swipe from the man knocked him into the tree and rendered him unconscious. The other two stared at the older boy in a mix of shock and horror before turning back to their enemy. He was taunting them by cracking his knuckles and flaring his nostrils," Well? Who's next?"

Kjelle clenched her fists, trying to ignore the fear climbing its way up her the back of her neck. She knew that Yarne was too cowardly to approach the enemy on his own, meaning that she was the only one that could finish the job. She tightened her hold on her spear and launched forward, dodging his fist and nicking his leg with her weapon. She dove in between his legs before he could grab her and tried to kick his legs out from underneath him. Unfortunately, she didn't pack enough of a punch and only managed to bruise him.

Mus smirked and grabbed one of her legs, yanking her off the ground before slamming her back onto the earth. She cringed when she heard her leg crack and gritted her teeth as a wave of pain rolled through her entire body. She tried to sit up, but that ended up being the wrong decision; the large man lunged forward and wrapped his enormous hand around her neck, slowly lifting her off the ground until her feet were dangling.

The aqua haired girl's eyes widened in horror and she frantically kicked her unbroken leg in a frail attempt to escape him. Her vision blurred as the air refused to enter her lungs. She slowly began to feel her body loose energy, and even the fear she had gained was starting to become a foggy memory.

She wasn't exactly sure what happened next. She her a sickening crack and felt something splatter on her face, accompanied by a deep, mortified scream. Next thing she knew, her body was in the snow and she could breath again. Her head rolled lazily to the side, only to be met with the sight of Yarne standing over Mus with a bloody hammer. She could briefly make out something scarlet staining the snow nearby her, and a coppery smell lingered in the air, making her nauseous.

Black began to dot her vision, coaxing her to pass out. Her eyelids fluttered closed, but a warm hand on her shoulder shook her from her mind. When she opened her eyes again, Yarne was kneeling in front of her," Kjelle?! Are you okay?! I'm so sorry! I'm so...," She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion when the sound of his voice didn't reach her ears anymore. His face grew continuously more frantic as her eyes began to shut again. Eventually, she couldn't fight the urge anymore and dropped her head onto the ground.

Yarne watched in horror as his friend lost consciousness, dread filling every crevice in his body. Gods, what had he done?! He should've helped them fight earlier! If he hadn't been a coward, they wouldn't be hurt! He turned away from Kjelle and felt bile rise in his throat when his eyes fell upon the fresh corpse of Mus. Gods, there was blood everywhere! He had shot people before, but being directly responsible for someone's death didn't sit well with him at all. He wasn't even sure what came over him; One moment he had been watching Mus choke Kjelle, the next he was sending his jackhammer into his head and watching it spurt out blood.

Gods, he was still bleeding! Yarne felt like puking, but his stomach was too empty to produce anything. His hand shakily reached for the walkie-talkie on Laurent's belt, fumbling to turn it on," Hello?! Home base?! Home base?! I need help!"

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Nah sat nervously in the back of the van the team had brought, holding the walkie-talkie in her hands while watching Emmy and Brady try and stop Anders from bleeding. Severa stood the corner and kept her eyes trained on the ground, refusing the show any form of emotion. Novak leaned against the wall next to Nah, occasionally making a suggestion to help. Levy sat cross legged on the floor and fiddled with her hands nervously, anxiously awaiting her friends to return," Why haven't we seen anybody yet?" She asked shakily," Shouldn't they be coming back by now?"

Novak smiled supportively, but it came across as forced," Don't worry, they can all take care of themselves. We knew that we'd have to put ourselves in danger when we came here, so-"

"Hold on a fucking minute," Everyone turned to face Severa, who was sending a deadly glare towards the boy," Why the hell aren't you fighting? You're more than capable! Heck, you're older than most of the kids that we sent out there!"

The brunette's face suddenly became more solemn, almost as if he was hiding something," I know that this looks bad, but there's a reason for everything-"

"No, she has a point," Levy spoke up," Why are people like Yarne and Owain out there while you sit comfortably in here?"

"You're nothing but a coward!"

"People are risking their lives out there!"

"Anders is hurt because of you-"

"Guys!" Novak shouted, silencing the two girls," Like I said, I know that this looks bad, but I...I can't risk my life right now when I'm going to have to-"

_"Hello?! Home base?!"_ Nah jumped when the walkie-talkie in her hands buzzed. Everyone in the van exchanged surprised looks, shocked out of their previous conversation,"_ Home base?! I need help!_"

Nah scrambled to pick up the walkie-talkie," Yarne? It that you? What's wrong?"

_"We beat Mus, but...Oh gods! He hurt Laurent and Kjelle really bad! There's so much blood! Oh gods...Oh gods!"_

Severa forced her way forward and pulled the communication device from Nah's hands," Tell us where you are, we're on our way," She sent a pointed look at Novak, as if to say that he was accompanying her whether he liked it or not," Where are you?"

_"N-Near the back end of the school,_" He stuttered," _Be careful. These guys are strong."_

"We will," The olive haired girl replied, sending a soft look towards Anders," Don't worry."

She hung up and tossed Anders weapon at Novak, watching his face to see his reaction. He examined the dagger in his hands before gently handing it back," I can't use this."

"Hmph! I knew it! You're nothing but a..."

Her voice trailed off when she saw him reach behind himself and pull out a rifle and a pouch of bullets," You didn't let me finish; I can't use that because I'm better with a gun over everything else."

Severa pursed her lips before giving him a brief nod," Fine, but don't mess up! Nah, Levy, you're in charge of guarding the van."

The two youngest girls shared nervous looks before giving her an anxious thumbs up. Severa grabbed Novak roughly by his arm and dragged him out of the van so he wouldn't be able to change his mind," Ah, so you finally come out."

The two teenagers' froze when they found one of the assassins standing right outside of their van. How long had he been there? Who was he? Wasn't one of the other groups supposed to fight him? Severa tightened her grip on her knives," Who the hell are you?"

"I wouldn't tell you, but I suppose that you'll figure it out eventually," He smirked and stepped forward," My name is Gallus, and I am the leader of the Ill Presage."

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Nate hated everything about this. The fact that Anders had volunteered him to murder another person was annoying, but the fact that he had to go through with it made him...tired. Wasn't there enough death already? He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to get the image of the dead Grimleal member out of his head. He should've let him go unscathed, but something about the fact that the man had seen and knew about Marie rubbed him the wrong way.

Gerome seemed to notice his friend's unease," What are you thinking?"

"I have a bad feeling."

"About what?"

The dark haired boy kept his gaze focused ahead," I don't know...yet."

He expected Gerome to brush his comment off or criticize him for being an idiot, but instead, he received and entirely different reaction," I understand," He understood? What did that mean? Nate knew why he felt uneasy, but the fact that Gerome, the man who had the best hold of himself, was nervous about something as well made him feel worse.

No. He couldn't be weak. He had to be strong for Anders. He had to protect his brother from the dangerous past. He had to hide his feelings so that Anders wouldn't worry about him. He had to be strong so that he could defend him from danger. If that meant killing people, then Nate would slaughter gladly.

Gerome's gaze shot towards a shadow in the distance. He picked up his hatchet and motioned for Nate to do the same with his gun, simply saying," We're not alone. He's come for us."

Without warning, two darts pierced the skin of each boy's neck, one right after the other. Nate hissed in pain and pulled the small artifact out, incredibly confused. He turned to look at Gerome, but found himself in front of Lissa instead. The boy blinked twice and rubbed his eyes, feeling his heart drop when his aunt hadn't disappeared," What are you doing here?" He growled, trying to force her away," It's too dangerous out here-"

"I'm so sorry," It was only then that he realized she was sobbing profusely," Y-You're-Oh gods, Anna-she was found-I...I'm so sorry," She reached for Nate in a vain attempt to smooth his fears," Your mother was killed in combat-"

"NO!" Nate yanked away from her grasp and backed up a few feet, tripping over himself and landing roughly in a puddle of blood. His face paled as he turned, only to find his parents lying on the ground," Mom? Dad?" He slowly got closer, he could see that the blood drenching his clothing was theirs," Mom! Dad! No!"

He tried to reach for them, but a pair of hands roughly yanked him back into what appeared to be a field of mud and rain. Thunder rumbled in the distance before a crack of lightning struck a nearby tree. Nate whimpered and tried to crawl away, but a foot crashed into his stomach towards the tree, which was how split exactly in half," Hey, I wonder what would happen if you were split in half?" A voice taunted," Would you die, or would you gain another twin?"

The friends of the bully snickered at his comment and used it as encouragement to yank him closer and closer to the tree, ignoring his screams for help. They forced his hands behind his back and tied him to the tree with barbed wire, watching his terrified state," Let's see if you can last the night, Nate-y boy. Maybe then you'll learn not to pick a fight with us."

"Don't leave me here!" Nate cried, despite not regretting standing up for his brother when the YlH asses started to bully him," I don't want to die! I don't want to die! Please, I don't-"

"-I don't want to die," A small voice whimpered. He felt his heart clench up when he turned to see Lucina standing a few feet away from him, wearing her disguise and trying to keep herself from crying," They were killed by us...our leader told us to kill them! I...I thought we were doing the right thing, but...I don't know if I can do this."

"You have to," Nate's voice hardly came out above a whisper, his eyes focused on the corpses of innocent people surrounding them. He knew that he was feeling the exact same thing, but if they wanted to get out of there alive, they needed to play along," Don't worry, Lucina, we'll figure something out. You're not going to die; not on my watch-"

"Lucina!" Nate blinked in confusion when Anders entered his mind, desperately trying to gain his attention. His eyes trailed from the gun in his hands to the terrified picture of his aunt," If you kill Robin, there will be no Lucina or Morgan. You won't only be responsible for her death, but theirs too! You'd destroy their future! Are you willing to do that?"

He frowned at his brother, his resolve faltering. He wouldn't be able to finish the job if he let Anders sway him. He gathered up as much bravery as he could and whipped back around to shoot his aunt, only to find a dark looking man standing in her place. He watched curiously as the man waved a Marie, who was so scared she was shaking, towards him," Now, she's going to come with me-"

The dark haired boy finally whipped out his gun and aimed it at Rugor," I don't think so."

The tall man rose his eyebrow and chuckled," What, do you suddenly feel like being a hero? Do you even know what her name is, because she looks just as terrified of you as she is to me. Why does it matter to you what happens to her? Aren't you planning on killing someone else? This should be easy for you-"

"Get out of here before I shoot you," Nate threatened, only causing the man to laugh harder," What? You just said that killing someone else should be...what was that? Oh yeah," He turned the safety off," Easy."

Rugor pouted and opened his mouth, but Anders voice came out," Wouldn't that add to your baggage?"

"My...what?" Nate watched in horror as Rugor faded away, replaced by Anders," They didn't even let us see her body. It destroyed Nate, but I knew that if I didn't get over it quickly, he would start to head down a deeper path," His eyes trailed off to the right, eventually falling on something in the distance that made his eyebrows scrunch up slightly. Nate felt the dread he had felt earlier crawl back into his chest, and he desperately wanted to say something, but no words came out. Without warning, Anders looked directly down at his brother," I'm not dead yet, Nate. Mom and dad aren't dead yet either. Hell, Lucina's alive as well. How much death are you going to have to experience before you discover that murder isn't going to solve anything?"

Without warning, an arrow soared through his brother's stomach," ANDERS! NO!" He watched in horror as the redhead's eyes rolled to the back of his head, causing his body to fall from its perch in the tree and land roughly on the ground. The twin scrambled to reach his older brother's side, but someone wrapped their arms around his torso and yanked him back," NO! NO! ANDERS! LET ME GO! LET ME GO OR I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!"

"Nate, wake up! You're hallucinating!"

Nate furrowed his eyebrows in confusion when he heard Owain's voice," W-What?"

"You're hallucinating," As he said that, the scenery faded back into what he had seen earlier. A corpse of a man was a few feet away from him with an arrow in his head, Gerome was murmuring stuff unconsciously with Noire trying to shake him out of it, and Owain was behind him holding him from thrashing any father away. It took Nate a few minutes for the words to sink in, and it took even longer for him to still his rapidly beating heart," Are you okay?"

"Where's Anders?" He choked out," I saw him die-"

"It was all a dream, Nate-"

The dark haired boy shook his head," No, those were memories. The only one that I didn't recognize was one of Anders getting shot with an arrow. We have to find him."

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"Come on, Luci," Inigo whined," Why can't we dance?"

The blue haired girl shot him an angry look before continuing on her patrol though the school," We're on a mission, that's why. We don't have time to mess around."

The brunette nudged her playfully, trying to lighten the mood from earlier. He hated seeing Lucina solemn, and the fact that she was acting even colder than usual made him feel queasy. Maybe he should have let Novak go with her. She'd probably be a lot happier-

He was so lost in his thoughts that he ran headfirst into her when she came to a dead stop. She stumbled forward a few steps and sent him another glare before rushing back to the window she had been staring through," Is that Gallus?"

"What?" Inigo glanced out the window, only to find a man dressed in all black preparing to fight Severa and Novak," How is that possible? Didn't Aversa say he'd be in the school?"

Lucina nodded and started running down the corridor, pulling Inigo along beside her," Shit, they're onto us! We need to get down there and help or else they'll-"

"Die?" The two froze right in front of the stairs, knowing the voice all too well," Oh well. It looks like you overlooked a little something in your plan to defeat us," The two pulled out their weapons and watched in dismay as Validar stepped out of the shadows," Me."

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**Dun dun DUN! Things got switched around, so now Severa (poor girl gets two battles) and Novak has to fight Gallus while Lucina and Inigo face off against Validar! Let's start from the beginning, shall we? I may have mentioned this before, but Anders sees a lot of his brother in Severa. They are both closed off and are both hiding something. We got a little bit of Anders backstory as well, but he got shot and Severa kicked the first assassin's butt! Owain and Noire talked a little bit about relationships before successfully defeating Simia (if you didn't notice, they were the only group that got out of their battle unscathed). Kjelle and Yarne bonded a little bit (with Laurent teasing both of them slightly), but Mus proved to be more of a challenge than they predicted. Yarne ended up being the one to kill him, but it freaked him out a lot. He also has to deal with the fact that he has two unconscious people with him but can only carry one. Why do you guys think that Novak didn't want to fight? I'm not sure if any of you noticed that from last week, but there is a reason why he's so hesitant to fight. What do you guys think? Okay, so Nate had a bunch of flashbacks from his past to help his character developement, but it also made him very vulnerable. His fight was an internal one instead of a physical one (I switched things up a little bit with those two). We'll find out more about what Gerome was hallucinating about later. What do you guys think? Was it his past too, or his worse nightmares? Maybe they were pleasant thoughts? Who knows? Finally, Lucina and Inigo were mislead to think that Gallus was in the main building, only to find that Validar was the one after them. What will happen next week?  
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**Okay guys. Like I said earlier, I couldn't find any reviews. If you posted anything on last weeks chapter, I'd still love to read your thoughts! PM me if you wish to talk about anything or have any questions, and I'd love to answer them! Also, if you anything about why my review section may not be working, please message me that too! I really want to hear your guys thoughts, and not reading any this week was very disconcerting. If you have any information on the matter, please tell me! **

**As usual, the next chapter will pick up where the last one left off. There will be more fighting, including a pair of future children that we didn't see in this chapter...where do you think they are? Who do you think they are? Did you notice their absence? Alright, I'll see you guys next week! Thank you for reading! **

**-Uprisingdragon**


	47. Chapter 47 The Wit in Bravery

**Hey guys! I'm back! Sorry about the lack of chapter last week. If you read my announcement, you would know that it was a super hard week for me and I couldn't bring myself to write because I didn't want it to be low quality. Anywho, let's talk about what happened last! Oh goodness, a lot happened. Anders is hurt, but Severa defeated their enemy. Both Noire and Owain defeated their (and Nate and Gerome's) enemy, and Yarne was the one to kill their enemy because the other two got badly injured. Novak and Severa were going to help the others when they came face to face with Lucina and Inigo's villain, and the said pair found themselves with Validar. Alrighty, I think that's it. Most of this chapter revolves around the children, but there's a cute moment between Lissa and Chrom. Happy reading!  
**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Novak felt his heart crawl into his throat when they found themselves face to face with Gallus. Wasn't Lucina and Inigo supposed to be fighting him? What did this mean? Were they hurt? Oh gods, did he kill them? The thought alone caused his head to feel like someone was driving a nail into it.

Gallus observed the two with disinterest. His eyes lazily wandered from them to the van, then back up to the school," Looks like your friends were mislead."

The two kids glanced up, only to see Lucina and Inigo watching them from the window. They didn't get time to feel relieved, thought, because the two were gone in a split second," What have you done with them?" Novak spat, feeling his frustration grow by the second.

"They're going to try and hold them hostage," Gallus replied lazily," At least, that's what I have been told. Who knows if I'm right or not."

Severa narrowed her eyes suspiciously," Who are you?"

"I am who I say I am," Gallus shrugged cockily," But that's not the question you should be asking, is it? You see, I knew that this was going to happen," To prove his point, he held up a bow and arrow and smirked," Recognize these, Severa?"

The olive haired girl's eyes widened in shock," I killed-"

"The wrong person?" Gallus dropped the weapon into the ground," How odd is that? You know, it is also odd that Laurent fell unconscious so easily. Oh yes, and why is it that Gerome and Nate started hallucinating? Is this all a coincidence, or was it planned out?"

Severa lunged forward, only to be held back by the sixteen year old," You shot Anders, and you're trying to tell me that it was a FUCKING COINCIDENCE?!"

Novak tightened his grip on Severa to keep her from lashing out and interrogated Gallus," Are you saying that you set this all up? You moved from person to person, leading everybody to their fights? What would that accomplish? Whose side are you on? Who even are you?!"

The teenager chuckled," You see, these are the questions you should be asking! As for whose side I'm on...," His voice trailed off as he pretended to think about it simply to mock the two," It's hard to say. I've faithfully served the Grimleal as of late, but it seems that I'm just a distraction so that they can capture the other two and bargain with...what's her name now? Robin?" He shrugged," After all my years of service, this is how they repay me? What a waste of time and energy."

"Does this mean...you're not going to fight us?" Severa questioned suspiciously.

"Did I ever say that?"

The olive haired girl gritted her teeth," Stop playing mind games with us and get to the point!"

Gallus smirked, sending shivers down the two teenagers' spines," This is inevitable, isn't it? We are destined to fight, and I am destined to die for my cause," He shrugged nonchalantly," Fine. If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get."

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Lucina immediately pulled out her weapon and stood between Validar and Inigo, trying to ignore the huff of annoyance that came from her friend," What the hell are you doing here?"

"I work here," He replied in a bored tone," The real question we should be asking is why you two are here. Aren't you technically trespassing onto school property? I could sue you-"

"We both know your motives," The blue haired girl cut off," There's no need to act civil around us in order to protect your reputation."

Validar chuckled at her comment and wandered to the window, watching the scene outside play out with fake interest," If you were somebody else, I would oblige. But you know what I figured out today from my leader after you left?" His gaze left the window and pierced into her, causing the hairs on the back of her next to stand up," You're from the future as well. In fact, you're my granddaughter-"

"I am not!" She took a step back, unconsciously inching closer to Inigo," The only reason you created my mother was to kill her! You are no family of mine, nor will you ever be."

He smirked," Oh you poor, stupid child. You don't know what I'm implying, do you?"

For a brief second, it felt like all of the air had been sucked out of the room. Lucina knew exactly what he was referring to, and she didn't like it at all," You're after my blood."

Validar hummed," Ah, so you finally understand my lovely little set up. All of this was planned out from the moment she came to us. She has guided many of our successes, dating all the way back to the death of your poor aunt."

"You monster!" Lucina's mind immediately went back to the day it all happened. It seemed like it was so long ago, but in reality, only a few months had passed. If only she had been faster. Emmeryn would still be with them today-

"There seems to be a little problem in your plan," The pair's eyes widened in surprise when Inigo spoke up, watching as he waltzed out from the spot Lucina had cornered him in," What if Lucina has Chrom's blood? She won't be any use to you then."

Validar leered at the boy," Won't she?"

"She won't," Lucina watched in horror as Inigo planted himself right in front of Validar and smirked," See, you probably think you're going to be able to hold her hostage. You, my friend, would be sorely mistaken," The older man tried to intimidate the brunette as much as he could, but the boy simply replied with a cheeky smile," You see, you're not the only one with a backup plan."

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When Aversa pulled Morgan aside and asked him to sneak into the high school and steal important Grimleal information, he felt himself swell up with pride. If he succeeded, he would impress everybody and finally earn their trust! To make matters even better, Cynthia was also tasked with getting Grimleal information beside him. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but Cynthia always made him feel at ease. The only other people that could do that was his parents and Owain, but even then he felt guilty because he couldn't remember them. The red headed girl didn't put any pressure on him and seemed to trust him as much as he trusted her.

Yet for some reason, Cynthia was acting eerily quiet during their mission. Whenever he asked her a question, she would either respond with a one worded answer or a brief nod. It didn't bother him that much at first, but when they were an hour into the mission, he broke," Hey, Cynthia."

The redhead rose her eyebrow slowly before stating,"...Morgan?"

"...How goes it?" Once again, she only answered with a shrug. He bit his lip nervously, trying to think of a conversation topic that would make her act as excited as usual," Hey, we should organize a soccer game with the Shepherds! Wouldn't that be fun?" She smiled meekly, unknowingly making Morgan's heart drop," Uh...have you mastered acting meek and demure yet?"

For a brief second, excitement flashed in her eyes. Unfortunately, her reaction was gone as soon as it showed up, hidden by the blank look she had been wearing all night,"...Yes...I have."

"Er...right," It was only then that he realized what she was doing; she thought that acting demure meant that she had to be silent! He tried to ignore the butterfly-like relief that fluttered in his stomach and laughed lightly," You know, I'm not sure that's actually how demure works. Maybe you just need a little more time?"

Cynthia pouted," No, I'm-," When she realized her misstep, she backtracked,"...That isn't...," Morgan rose his eyebrows anxiously, waiting for her to finish the sentence. Was she thinking over what he said? Did she realize that people liked her just the way she was? Before he could ask her, she finally finished,"...Necessary."

The blue haired boy' shoulders slumped in disappointment," I can actually feel myself growing old waiting for you to finish a sentence. I'm starting to think this was a bad idea."

He immediately regretted saying that out loud as he watched the fifteen year old's face fall in disappointment," What? No way! I practiced really hard!" Morgan cringed and opened his mouth to apologize when he heard a voice from the floor above them. He tried to hush her so that he could listen, but she continued to try and defend herself," Look, I'll even show you my demure face-mmph?"

Morgan cut her off by wrapping his hand over her lips and motioning to the ceiling," Somebody's here with us," He whispered. She narrowed her eyes at him and licked his hand, automatically making him yank his palm away in shock," Hey, don't do that!"

"Don't cover my mouth!" She whispered back in annoyance.

As much as he wanted to combat that, he knew that an argument wasn't the best option at the moment. There was no point for them to bicker, and besides, the voices were already gone," You're right...Er, all this aside, though, how have the others reacted to this new you?"

Cynthia seemed to forget their argument, because she grinned proudly at the outcome of her experiment," Aw, it was really sweet! They were all very concerned. They kept coming up and asking me what was wrong."

"Oh?"

She nodded enthusiastically," Oh yeah! People were all running up and shouting at me and stuff!_ What is wrong with you, Cynthia_?! _You look upset, Cynthia_! _Why do you keep making that horrible face, Cynthia_?" She scooped his hands in hers," So if what you said is true, that means they all miss the old perky me, right?"

"Er...," Morgan's eyes flickered from their interlocked hands to her elated face, causing the butterflies in his stomach to increase tenfold. No matter how much he wanted to be honest with her, he couldn't bring himself to," R-right! I'm sure that's what they meant. They all want you to be yourself. Your happy, energetic...," He smiled cheekily,"...very loud self."

Cynthia squealed and launched forward to wrap her arms around his neck and pull him into a warm hug, bouncing up and down in excitement," Yay! It's such a relief to know for sure!" Without warning, she stopped jumping, unintentionally making him bend down to be near her height," Oof, all that worrying had my stomach in knots," She finally pulled away from him, but let her hands slide down so that they were cupping her arms," But now that it's over, we can finish our mission! We should head upstairs; that's where we last heard the voices."

Morgan nodded, frantically trying to shoo away the flustered feeling that was bubbling up in his chest. Since when did Cynthia make him feel nervous? Wasn't she the one he was supposed to feel at ease with? He brushed the thoughts away, making a mental note to think about it later and followed Cynthia up the stairs. Once they reached the top, she grabbed his shoulder and gently pushed him down so that he could peak over the top," It's your sister," She whispered.

His eyebrows rose as high as they could reach as he flipped around to watch the scene unfold; Lucina had her rapier pointed at some old man that looked eerily familiar, and Inigo was standing behind her with his hand on his holster," What the hell are you doing here?"

"I work here," The old man replied in a bored tone. Despite the fact that Morgan had no idea who this guy was, he gave him a really bad feeling. It was almost as if he had seen him before, hut couldn't quite put his finger on it," The real question we should be asking is why you two are here. Aren't you technically trespassing onto school property? I could sue you-"

"We both know your motives," The blue haired girl cut off," There's no need to act civil around us in order to protect your reputation."

Morgan watched his older sister be tough with pride, making him wish that he was just as strong or brave as she was. Maybe then people wouldn't look at him with distrust! He was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't realize that the old man had started talking again," If you were somebody else, I would oblige. But you know what I figured out today from my leader after you left?" His gaze left the window and pierced into her, causing the hairs on the back of her next to stand up," You're from the future as well. In fact, you're my granddaughter-"

Granddaughter? Did that make him his grandfather? Morgan felt himself becoming more confused by the second," I am not!" Lucina defended. She took a step back, unconsciously inching closer to Inigo, who was staring at her with wide eyes," The only reason you created my mother was to kill her! You are no family of mine, nor will you ever be."

What? Why would anybody want to kill their mother? She was the greatest woman in the entire world! He almost went up there to pick a fight with the stupid old man, but Cynthia's grip was unconsciously becoming tighter on his shoulder. He turned to try and explain himself to her, but stopped when he realized her eyes were completely trained on the scene in front of them. If that wasn't bad enough, she looked scared to the point where she wanted to cry," Oh you poor, stupid child. You don't know what I'm implying, do you?"

For a brief second, it felt like all of the air had been sucked out of the room. Morgan watched in horror as his older sister lost some of her bravado," You're after my blood."

The enemy hummed," Ah, so you finally understand my lovely little set up. All of this was planned out from the moment she came to us. She has guided many of our successes, dating all the way back to the death of your poor aunt."

He had an aunt that died? The only relatives that he knew about were Lissa, Hewitt, and for some reason, Aversa. None of them were dead, were they? He was pulled from his thoughts when Lucina yelled," You monster!"

"Morgan!" Cynthia hissed. The boy raised his eyebrow in confusion, watching her as she frantically pointed her finger towards the scene that was playing out in front of them. He hesitantly followed her finger and felt his heart stop when he realized that Inigo was watching them. Before he could explain himself, Inigo snapped his fingers, flipped around, and dove into action," There seems to be a little problem in your plan. What if Lucina has Chrom's blood? She won't be any use to you then."

The villain leered at the boy," Won't she?"

"She won't," The two watched in confusion as he approached the old man," See, you probably think you're going to be able to hold her hostage. You, my friend, would be sorely mistaken," The older man tried to intimidate the brunette as much as he could, but the boy simply replied with a cheeky smile," You see, you're not the only one with a backup plan."

Morgan blinked," I think he's referring to us."

"What?" The girl looked inbetween the two in surprise, only stopping once the boy steadied her," Why are we the backup plan? We don't have a plan!"

The boy haired boy cringed, knowing that she was right. What would his mother do? She always got them out of a tight spot, and now it was his turn. What to do, what to do...His eyes fell on a fire alarm resting on the wall a few feet away from him. He nudged Cynthia and tilted his head towards the device," I've got an idea."

The redhead grinned and nodded in agreement, sneaking over to the opposite wall. She made brief eye contact with Inigo, who winked at her in return," You forgot about Nah."

"You mean that twelve year old we tried to apprehend in the sewers?" The man rolled his eyes," She isn't strong enough to defeat me."

"First of all, she probably is," Inigo defended in annoyance," Secondly, it's not you she's after. It's the school."

The enemy narrowed his eyes," What are you talking about?"

Inigo smirked," Her fire," Cynthia took this as her cue and pulled the alarm, causing the alarms and sprinklers to turn on," You might want to go before the fire department comes and sees all the violence that you took part in tonight," Inigo pretended to tip an imaginary hat to the cult leader before taking Lucina's hand in his and pulling her down the stairs. The other two jumped up from their hiding spots and zoomed after the pair, not stopping their sprint until they were outside.

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Severa was just about to attack Gallus when the fire alarm went off. The three looked up at the school in shock, trying to locate where the fire might be. From the corner of her eye, she saw Novak's panicked face and considered sending him in after Lucina and Inigo. Don't get her wrong, she was worried sick about her best friend, but somebody needed to protect Anders and the younger Shepherds.

Just as she was about to give him the okay, Novak tapped her on the shoulder and pointed to a vacant spot on the concrete," He's gone."

The olive haired girl let her sword drop in relief. To be honest, she wasn't sure if she was ready for another fight. The first one wore her out both physically and mentally, and she wasn't sure if she could keep her focus for a second one," Good. He'll come back again, but we'll get him next time when we have more backup."

The brunette nodded in agreement before allowing his eyes to fall on something behind her," Hey, is that..."

Inigo, closely followed by the other three, was wildly motioning towards them," Get in the van! Get in the van!"

Novak didn't need to be told twice and pushed Severa towards the vehicle after the four passed them. Nah jumped to her feet as soon as they entered and motioned to her walkie talkie," Noire and Owain found the others and were going to bring them back when the fire alarm rang."

"They said they'd meet us at Ylisse High," Levy finished," We'd better hurry if we don't want to get questioned by the police."

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Chrom gave up on sleeping a long time ago. The fact that both of his children were going to fight a group of dangerous assassins didn't sit well with him at all, and it didn't help that Aversa was the one that came up with the plan. He questioned why Robin trusted them so easily after all they had done to hurt her, especially since they didn't seem so eager to join their side in the first place. Maybe it was a situation where he needed to be there, and he knew that he should give his girlfriend more credit, but...

He shook his head and climbed out of bed, pulling on his favorite blue sweatshirt and climbing downstairs to distract himself by watching some TV. Much to his surprise, Lissa was already occupying the couch and watching what seemed to be little kid shows," Lissa? What are you doing down here?"

The blonde looked up in surprise, relaxing once she realized who it was," I couldn't sleep. The fact that I just sent out my two children, both of whom are either my age or younger, into a battle where they could be killed...," She sighed overdramatically," I wish I could be there to help."

Chrom chuckled at her theatrics," Yeah, you could play a mean flute on the side while they kill people."

"...Shut up."

Her brother frowned when he noticed something deeper that Lissa seemed to be hiding. He made his way over into the couch next to her and paused the TV," Hey, is something on your mind? Or are you just sighing for the sheer joy of it?"

"Well, it's just...," Her voice trailed off, accompanied by an incredibly guilty look," Do I...Do I seem like an Exalt to you?"

Chrom blinked in confusion," Er, what was that again?"

The fifteen year old pouted," I'm asking if I seem like an Exalt!"

"Well if you aren't, you owe us some rent for your room in the house," He joked.

Lissa rolled her eyes," Oh, hardy har! That's not what I mean and you know it," Once again, she became more somber and started to fiddle nervously with a strand of her hair," I'm asking if you think I live up to the family name."

The blue haired boy rose his eyebrow. He hadn't heard her worry about this before. It was usually something along the lines of being more ladylike or helpful, but this seemed a lot more serious than they were both used to dealing with," What brought this on?"

She shrugged softly," I dunno. I mean, mom and Emm died to protect us. You aren't afraid of anything and would do anything to protect us. Lucina and Owain are trained fighters and incredibly brave. Morgan and Emmy are always positive and help morale. It's just...When I compare myself to the rest of you guys, I...I feel like dead weight."

Chrom was silent for a few seconds, letting everything she said sink in before snorting," What a stupid thing to say."

His sister looked like he had just slapped her in the face," Hey!"

"Well? It's the 're fine just how you are, Lissa. Give yourself a little credit," He ruffled her hair playfully before getting back onto his feet," I'll see you later."

Lissa watched in a mix of shock and annoyance as her brother sauntered out of the living room," What? Hey! Don't give me a lazy answer and then run away! I hope you trip and break your nose, jerkface!"

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With Cynthia's lock picking skills, the children were able to regroup in Ylisse's band room. They didn't start of discussing anything, instead opting to try and heal the wounded. Emmy and Brady jumped inbetween Anders, Laurent, and Kjelle with the help of Inigo, who knew a little bit about patching people up. Emmy practically forced both Nate and Gerome to rest, saying that the poison would wear off after a few hours of rest. Much to everybody's surprise, Severa and Yarne grouped together, both somewhat shaken by the earlier events. Levy was making Owain and Noire retell their stories with Nah and Novak beside her. Cynthia was bouncing back and forth between the groups, jumping in whatever conversation suited her at the moment. That left Morgan and Lucina to talk about what had just happened earlier," So you were the backup plan, huh?"

Morgan chuckled weakly," I guess."

His older sister smiled at his awkward answer," I see. Well, whether it was planned or not, you guys did save us from a battle we may have lost. You and Cynthia make a good team."

He swelled up with pride at the comment," Thanks!"

"It's true. I'm just glad she stopped the awkward pause thing she kept doing," Lucina giggled when she saw her younger brother's face scrunch up with guilt," Do you know something about that, Morgan?"

"...Yeesh. Between the pauses and that face, it's no wonder people thought she was crazy. I doubt it had anything to do with her missing pep and verve," A small, flustered smile crept onto his lips,"... Not that I could tell her that without breaking her heart, though," He shrugged," Ah, well. At least she's smiling again!"

Lucina stared at him for a few seconds in awe before punching his arm," You like her!"

His face must have turned the same shade as Cordelia's hair, because his sister squealed in excitement," I don't-Luci, that's-I-"

"This is so cute!" Morgan watched curiously as the blue haired girl's serious demeanor vanished, replaced by an elated sixteen year old," You have to tell her!"

"Gah! No I don't!"

"So you do like her!"

"Luci..."

To be honest, Morgan had never seen her so happy before. Did she know something that he didn't? Well, she thought that he had a crush on Cynthia, and that could never happen in a billion years-

"Hey guys!"

Morgan's face turned bright red when said girl sneak up behind them and joined in the conversation," Gah! Cynthia? What are you doing here?"

"I heard you say my name!" The redhead giggled at his expression," Gee, you sure look embarrassed! Did I scare you?"

The blue haired boy folded his arms in defense," N-No! We were just talking about-"

"How you two make a good pair," Lucina finished, making her brother turn even more red than before," In fact, one could say that you two were partners!"

Cynthia, oblivious to the boy's flustered state, wrapped her arm around his neck," Thanks! I don't know if we would've gotten out of there without his great plan-"

"Cynthia!" The three turned to Owain, who was frantically waving his arms from the other side of the room," The group wants to hear of your glorious tale in defeating Validar, the deadliest villain in all of Ylisse!"

The redhead clapped her hands in excitement," Of course! Come on, Morgan!" She took his hand in hers and dragged him over to the opposite side of the room to talk with the others.

Lucina giggled in amusement and watched her younger brother get carted off. Novak noticed his

friend and made his way over, smiling at the interaction between the two younger kids," Is it just me, or do they look cute together?"

The brunette chuckled," Yeah. Love seems to be springing up all over the place now that we don't have the Grimleal to worry about...as much."

The girl nudged him playfully," Is there a lucky girl that holds a special spot in your heart?"

"Not really. I'm waiting for the right person," Novak nudged her back," What about you? Any guys catch your eye?"

She shrugged," I don't know...I guess I haven't really been focused on relationships either," She furrowed her eyebrows when she saw his surprised expression," What?"

"You've got to be kidding me, right?" Lucina shook her head in confusion," Are you trying to tell me-Oh never mind. I don't want to start something that would only make it awkward."

"Make what awkward?"

He smirked," Oh you know...," He poked her nose playfully," stuff."

The blue haired girl glared at him for a few seconds, hoping that that he would give in and tell her what he was going on about. When it became evident that he didn't know anything, she held her hands up in defeat," Fine. Why is it that you always seem to know something that I don't?"

Novak chuckled," It's something I've known about for years. I'm just waiting for it to happen."

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When Emmy and Brady informed Inigo that his work was done, he had nothing to do. He didn't exactly want to join Severa and Yarne due to the fact that neither of them liked him. There was also no way he could approach Lucina had Novak. If he was there, there was no way that Inigo would be able to talk to Lucina. He would just get tongue-tied and embarrass himself.

"Shadow DRAAAAAGON!"

Inigo smirked and made his way over to Owain's little story telling circle, watching in amusement as the white haired boy swung his sword around. By this point, Nah and Noire had left to do some target practice, leaving on Levy, Cynthia, and Morgan to listen to his tales," Ah! If it isn't Owain."

Owain nodded politely to him before continuing with the next pose," Radiant DAAAAAAAAAWN!"

"And how are you today?" He chuckled in amusement, ignoring the glare he was receiving from Levy.

"Busy!" He hissed. Owain moved on to complete the next pose, but the judgement look the brunette was giving him proved to be too distracting,"...Which I would have thought was obvious. What do you want?" For a second, he lit up like a Christmas tree," Are you going to tell us your tale?"

Inigo thought back to how uneventful his encounter was and chose not to mention how useless he was compared to everybody else," Ah, I'm sorry. I don't want to outshine your story with mine. Perhaps I'll come back when you're done playing."

Levy tried to nudge the boy away and whined," Hey! This is serious!"

"Seriously...childish? Seriously...embarrassing?"

"Seriously none of your business!" Owain tried to shoo him away," Now, if you don't have a tale and won't be polite when the rest of us are speaking, leave us alone...Seriously."

Inigo rolled his eyes dramatically," Sigh."

The white haired boy pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance," Okay, just stop. You're not even sighing. You're just saying the word _sigh_," He looked towards the others for help, but Cynthia and Morgan seemed to be completely invested in some sort of hand game. Levy seemed torn between siding with the boys and shrugged weakly, leaving him to defend himself," Maybe that's why all those girls keep turning you down," He eventually quipped.

The older boy chuckled," You're guaranteed to fail 100% of the dates you never attend, my friend. Perhaps you should name your next move Eternal Chastity."

Owain crossed his arms and smirked," Sure, why not? I've got the perfect teacher for it right in front of me!"

"Why, you little-"

"What, you want to go? Come on, chump! Have at me! My Shinon Strike will wipe the floor with you!"

Levy finally stood up and pushed the two apart from each other," This is not the time to start a fight, especially since it's over something so trivial."

Inigo nodded in agreement, pretending that he wasn't just about to start a brawl," Few things in life would give me greater satisfaction than to knock you on your rear," He straightened the imaginary wrinkles in his clothing,"...But one of us has to be the adult here. And it's obviously not going to be you," He waved politely before ultimately deciding to brag about his cleverness to Lucina and Novak.

Owain scoffed," Yeah, that's right. Walk away. You just keep right on walking...Jerk."

The purple haired girl patted his shoulder comfortingly," Come on, let's continue the stories. I want to hear more about this Shinon Strike you mentioned."

Just like that, all of his anger was gone and replaced by his enthusiastic self," Of course! So you see..."

* * *

**So, four out of five of the assassins are dead, and Gallus and Validar escaped. Novak and Severa got to talk a little bit with Gallus, but he vanished before they could fight. Speaking of Severa, she seems to be getting a little attached to a certain redhead boy! Do you think anything will come out of it? Inigo was clever enough to get them out of the situation without getting anybody hurt, and with the combined efforts of the four, they managed to get out unscathed. Do you think Morgan has a crush on Cynthia? Do you think Lucina has a crush on somebody but just doesn't realize it? Does Novak like Lucina, or is there something else he's hiding? I was super excited to write the support between Owain and Inigo, because I like their banter! I also like that there was a moment between Chrom and Lissa, because that is going to come back up soon. There isn't going to be as much action in the next few chapters because of the past few chapters. In fact, I think that the next chapter is going to be...drumroll...Christmas! Yay! It's time for another holiday chapter! I definitely know that the Exalts and Gaius and Cynthia are going to be in it, but if you want to see more characters, comment below! Review time!**

**Cloudsandcrows:**** Hey! Sorry I didn't reply last week. It was a update thingy, so I figured that it would just be more interesting to answer alongside a chapter like I usually do. Heh heh, yeah, it wasn't very pretty. I'm not a huge fan of gore either, but seeing that there was a fight, I couldn't cut it all out. That, and I'm pretty terrible at writing fights. I liked the middle two (Owain and Yarne's) the best. I'm glad you like the way I write Severa! I think that she has a plethora of layers, and that everybody sees a slightly different version of her depending on who she's with. I tried writing the flashbacks realistically because that's what Nate was seeing (I try to have sections be in characters POVs without making it them directly telling it), so I'm sorry that it was confusing at first. I considered putting it in italics, but I sort of wanted to make the readers question what was going on. My favorite character is probably Chrom because he's my hubby, but I really love Lon'qu, Nowi, Lissa, and Morgan (Inigo is also growing on me). Of course, I have characters I like writing (Gaius, Gaius, Gaius, Owain, Gaius), but that's slightly different. You're right! It was Morgan and Cynthia (I think I briefly mentioned Brady, but I wouldn't put it past myself if I forgot him)! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Alright, so as I said before, the next chapter(s?) are going to be Christmas fluff! The Exalts and Gaius and Cynthia are going to defintely be in it, but if you want to see another family celebrate, comment below! I'd be happy to put more characters in it! Thank you guys for reading, and once again, I'm sorry I didn't post last week. It shouldn't happen again until the end of February (I'm going on vacation for a weekend). See you guys next Sunday!**

**-Uprisingdragon **


	48. Chapter 48 Yuletide Spirit

**Hey guys! I'm finally back and ready to roll! I was so excited to post this chapter that I wrote it ahead of schedule! I'm sorry that I had to take so long to post a chapter. My life is becoming extremely busy and there seems to be no end in sight, so I'm getting very stressed out and ragged (I literally woke up at noon today because I was so tired). Enough about my life! I am so happy to have wonderful followers like you, because with your work and dedication, we have reached OVER 200 REVIEWS! Seeing you guys post such supportive things gave me so much inspiration, and I am incredibly lucky to have people like you reading my story! Thank you so much! So, we left off with the future children defeating four out of five of the assassins. Anders was injured and Nate and Gerome hallucinated really bad things. Okay, I think that's about it! Enjoy!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Despite the looming threat of both Validar and Gallus, things were finally starting to calm down for the Shepherds. At first, the lack of Grimleal intervention in their lives unnerved them greatly, but after two weeks, it became apparent that they weren't going to make a move until they rebuilt their numbers.

Most of the kids took this as an opportunity to either retrain themselves or give their parents basic defense training, just in case one of them got jumped at an inopportune moment. Most of them took to it very quickly, but some of the younger parents were having a bit of trouble.

Despite this, everyone was ecstatic when the school year was finally coming to a close. Frederick had promised to allow the band a Christmas party on their last day of school in order to lighten the mood and give his students a little bit of peace and quiet. As soon as Sumia heard word about the party, she immediately set work to decorations and games. In fact, she somehow convinced Robin and Cordelia to skip their afternoon classes to help her decorate. When it finally came time to celebrate, the band room was decorated in festivities and everybody was ready to party.

In any other situation, Gaius would've been enjoying himself. Cynthia had dragged Sumia off to give her a present before she left to visit her parents for the holidays, leaving him to rummage through the giant bag of sweets his girlfriend gave him. Unfortunately, his roommate was staring at him too much for him to savor it.

After a full five minutes of Henry completely focused on him, the redhead finally spoke up," What is it, Junior? You're staring at me like I've got a banana for a nose."

The boy blinked a few times before laughing," I wasn't looking at YOU, grumpy. I was looking at your sack of sweets!"

Gaius immediately jumped to the defensive and hugged his present closer to himself," Hey, keep your sticky little mitts to yourself, kiddo. No one touches Gaius's candy stash and lives to tell the tale."

"I don't want any, silly," His eyes fell back onto the sack," I just like looking at them."

Why would he be so interested if he didn't want to eat any of them? Gaius rose his eyebrow suspiciously, going through every possibility in his head. The only thing that came to mind seemed impossible, but he was willing to give it a go," What? You never seen sweets before?"

Much to his shock, Henry shook his head," Not many, no. Back in Plegia Academy, we hardly had any cakes or sweets at all. We're not allowed to have candy because the teachers say it's bad for you," He shrugged half heartedly," So the foods we eat are kind of basic, you know? Nothing like those, anyhow."

"Sounds like you had it pretty rough," That was an understatement in the least. A world without candy?! What kind of hell did he come from?

The white haired boy chuckled at his flabbergasted expression," Yup. It's hard to make cakes out of turnips, though that doesn't stop people trying!" His eyes fell back on the sweets," Anyway, the point is, I've never seen so many tasty-looking treats all in one place!"

Gaius swelled up with pride," Well, when it comes to sweets and cakes, presentation is as important as flavor. A sophisticated gourmand like me can tell a good cake from a bad one at fifty paces."

"Huh. I never dreamed there were so many different kinds of desserts. I'm pretty sure I could spend the whole day staring at your stash!" He joked.

Unfortunately, Gaius took him very seriously," You know what, Junior? I can see you're a man of exquisite taste. Tell you what...," He looked both ways suspiciously before pulling the two of them down and whispering," I'm gonna show you my secret hoard. I'm talking the gods' own sweets here. Treats like you ain't never seen. I've got a feeling you'll appreciate their splendor more than most."

"Huh?! You mean you've got even more than what's in that sack?!"

"Hush!" He scolded," Do you honestly think that this was my biggest stash? This little sampling would barely last me a single week! Anyway, wait right here while I fetch my hoard. And don't try to follow me!"

Henry could only watch at his roommate disappeared to who knows where, leaving the white haired boy to laugh it off," All right! Come back soon! Nya ha! This is gonna be great!"

Just as he was about to wander off to find Lissa, a familiar voice boomed from behind him," HENRY! CAN YOU HEAR ME?!"

The sixteen year old turned around and smiled once he laid eyes on his band teacher," Oh, hey, Frederick! What's up?"

Unfortunately for him, the man didn't seem too pleased to see him," You were absent at yesterday's training session?"

Once again, Henry found himself becoming confused. Just when he thought he was finally settling in, something came up to surprise him," Training session? First I've heard of it!"

"Surely you recall Chrom reminding everyone on Wednesday."

"Ooooooooooooh, THAT training session!" He shrugged apologetically," It must have slipped my mind."

Frederick narrowed his eyes," Then you weren't absent due to injury or illness?"

The white haired boy laughed," I WISH I had an awesome illness, but no. I'm right as rain."

Frederick pursed his lips," I suppose that's good to hear. However I'm quite disappointed you missed the session. Being prepared for battle is a matter of life and death."

"Aw, don't worry about me, Frederick. I'm not going to die so easily!"

"What makes you, out of all your comrades, so uniquely immune to this battle's perils?"

For a split second, his smile almost slipped," Oh, you know. Stuff and things."

The older brunette clenched his fists by his sides," I do not know! Training is essential for all of us, and that includes you! How are you supposed to protect yourself and your family if you're lazing about-"

"Okay, fine!" Frederick had a valid point. While he was positive that Owain and Emmy were much better fighters than himself, he knew that Lissa had little to no training. It was no wonder that his teacher was so adamant about his strength," Geez, careful not to twist your underwear there...," His eyes finally fell on his girlfriend, who was in an exaggerated conversation with Maribelle. That looked like much more fun than talking about serious stuff with Frederick. Without a second thought, he started to make his way towards Lissa.

Frederick had to do a double take when he saw the sixteen year old start to wander away," H-Henry? Where are you going? I'm not finished with you yet!"

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Inigo's plan was flawless; he started off by making sure Novak was busy playing a truth or dare game with Nah and some of the other band students. After he made sure that said boy would not leave his spot, he hung up a branch of mistletoe by the door. All he had to do was stand underneath it and beckon Lucina over. As soon as she arrived, he would feign surprise and point to the plant, insisting that they kiss. It was genius.

He rubbed his hands together in excitement, anxiously watching his crush and waiting to spring into action. She was seemingly in a light conversation with Severa, leaving her wide open for his plan. It was finally going to happen. Inigo was finally going to-

"What are you doing?" Inigo nearly jumped out of his skin and spun around to face one of the younger and students, Hadlee. Before he could answer, her eyes flickered up to the branch of mistletoe hanging above the pair. A blotch of red splashed upon her cheeks when realization hit her," Ooh, you want a kiss!"

Inigo's face turned bright pink, watching in agony as the band turned to see what the younger member was yelling about," Lower your voice! I don't want the entire band to watch! As lovely as you are, I don't think an audience is necessary."

"I knew you were pretty desperate, but I didn't know you were that desperate!" She giggled. Hadlee continued to watch as the boy pouted, contemplating what to do. Eventually, she just shrugged," Oh, if you insist!"

Without warning, the freshman grabbed Inigo by his collar, dragged him down to her height, and kissed him. A million thoughts zoomed through his mind, the main one being that a girl was actually accepting his advances for once. Unfortunately, that girl wasn't Lucina. Not that he was complaining, of course. A kiss from a pretty girl was always welcomed. It just...didn't feel as satisfactory as he thought it would.

The kiss was over just as soon as it started, leaving Inigo incredibly flustered and Hadlee amused. She patted him lightly on the shoulder before returning to the truth or dare game she had just emerged from. His eyes involuntarily shifted to Lucina, and he nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the annoyed look on her face. This wasn't part of the plan! He was supposed to kiss her, not some random freshman!

"Hey Inigo!"

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and turned back, only to find Emmy standing next to him. He opened his mouth to question her, but she cut him off with the wave of a hand and pointed towards the mistletoe above them," You've got to be kidding me."

Emmy's nose flared," Excuse me?! Why is it that you're willing to kiss literally any girl on the planet, but I'm the one you put your foot down with?!"

"No, that's not it at all! You're incredibly beautiful and sweet, I just...am incredibly confused to why you would want to kiss me."

"What, do you think you're too good for me?! Ooh, that's it!" Unlike Hadlee, who went all the way, Emmy simply kissed him on the cheek. As she pulled away, she winked at him. Inigo swore that he saw something more, almost as if she knew something that he didn't, but she was already walking away before he could ask her.

Inigo started to go after her, but a hand on his shoulder dragged him back to his spot. He expected it to be yet another girl, but instead found himself in front of his father. Lon'qu didn't say anything at first, instead opting to stare at him with what looked like disappointment," Don't tell me you want a kiss too?" His son joked, but his laughter eventually died off when his father's face grew even more irritated than before," You're staring, Father. Is there something on my face?"

Relief flooded him when Lon'qu finally answered," No. I was just wondering if you were like this in the future as well."

"Depends on what you mean by like this, I suppose."

"For someone who came from an apocalyptic hellscape, you're awfully carefree. Seems like you haven't a care in the world past whose bed you'll be sharing tonight," His father glanced over at Lucina, who had her arms crossed and was obviously avoiding looking in their direction. Inigo frowned and began to wonder if his plan was the right course of action to take, but his father broke him out of his thoughts when he spoke up again," Lucina's so driven and serious...It's strange you don't have any of that purpose."

His father's words practically stabbed a hole in his already damaged heart. Not only was Lucina annoyed at him, but now his father was making jabs? What was next? Was his mother going to whip out a sword and attack him? What was going on? With all these girls practically lining up to kiss him, today should have been going wonderfully! He puffed out his cheeks in irritation," No purpose?! I'll have you know I'm EXTREMELY driven!"

Lon'qu didn't seem to buy it," Really?"

"Indeed! I will not rest until every woman swoons at just hearing my name!" Well, that wasn't quite true, but if he told his father that he was trying to impress the very girl he was comparing him to...Inigo wasn't quite sure how that would play out. Plus, he didn't really want anyone to know about his feelings. The day to day rejection was already enough to wound him.

Unfortunately, his excuse turned out to be the wrong answer,"...Your purpose in life is to be popular with girls? You literally traveled across time...to be popular with girls?!"

"To be popular with ALL girls. Genius, I know," He almost flinched when his dad's face turned even more red with anger," But stop, Father. You're making me blush."

If he was having this conversation with anyone else, Lon'qu would've lashed out. But seeing that this was his only son, he took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew that his son could be serious, but the very thought of that motivation only coming in the form of getting girls was unthinkable to him," I...I don't even know what to say."

"What? It never bothered you when Mother would blush in front of you!"

"No, that's not what...," He took a deep breath and began to trudge in the opposite direction," I'm going to talk to your mother."

Inigo let his body relax once his father was out of sight, not realizing how tense he was until he was gone,"...Not a care in the world, huh? Not a thought in my head, he means!" He closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall, letting everything that just happened sink in. When he had come up with this plan, this was the last thing that came to his mind. Why couldn't anything he wanted to happen come true for once?

"Uh...Inigo?" He cracked one of his eyes open, only to find Noire standing in front of him," W-We need to k-kiss."

The brunette blinked a few times, confusion filling his body once again. Didn't Owain say something about Noire liking that Priam guy? Why would she want to kiss him? Inigo rose his eyebrow," Is there something going on that I don't know about?"

"W-What are you talking about?"

"Girls keep coming up to kiss me! I mean, it's not like I'm complaining or anything, but I was under the impression that you liked someone else."

For a split second, it looked like Noire was going to run away from him. She spun around, but stopped when her eyes fell on the group playing truth or dare. She tightened her fists to try and dispel the nerves she was feeling before turning back with an unsettling smile," Oh, but I am my mother's daughter, you know..."

Inigo blinked, not liking at all where this was going,"...And what does Tharja have to do with any of this?"

Much to his shock, she pinned him against the wall and whispered," When it comes to chasing our prey, we never tire. It's in our blood. You might say I'm a bit...obsessive about stuff like this," Inigo tried to escape from the girl's grasp, but found that she was much stronger than he had anticipated," You aren't going to lose me," She scolded," No, sir. Noooooo, sir."

Inigo stared at her in horror for a few seconds before furiously trying to wiggle his way out," Someone help me! Please! Anyone!"

Noire frowned," What's the problem? I'm just doing what I was asked. Just keeping the hyenas at bay."

"Hyenas? Hey, wait a second!" He glanced over at the group every girl who had approached him came from and grimaced when he saw them trying to hold back their laughter," Who asked you to do this-"

"SILENCE, FOOL! I WILL ANSWER NO FURTHER QUESTIONS!" She tightened her grip on him and leaned in so that their noses were practically touching," Now stand very still."

Inigo shook his head wildly," Wait! Stop! Aaaaugh! Help meeeeee-"

"Noire, what's going on here?"

The pair turned to find Lucina, who looked about ready to murder someone. Her friend physically relaxed when the blue haired girl arrived, proving to Inigo that her advances onto him were not part of her motives," I was just having a little chat with him, that's all. Don't worry, he's all yours."

Noire patted Inigo's chest comfortingly and practically ran back to the group she came from, leaving him alone with the girl," Ah, Lucina! It's nice to see-" He moved to leave his spot, but Lucina took Noire's place and pinned him back against the wall. He gulped when he saw the fury in her eyes," L-Luci?"

"What the heck do you think you're doing?! Why are you manipulating other girls into kissing you?" She scowled," That's a new low, even for you."

"I'm not manipulating anybody!"

Lucina rolled her eyes," Oh really? You mean to tell me that you're just hanging out underneath the mistletoe for fun?"

Inigo opened his mouth to protest, but the words died in his mouth. As much as he wanted to deny it, she was right to some degree. The irony was that she was the girl he was trying to kiss," I can't get anything past you, can I?"

"The sooner you learn that, the better," She finally released him and crossed her arms," When you see a woman, all you think of is how to seduce her. Everybody knows it."

The brunette was about to protest when an idea popped him his head," Waaait a minute...I see what's happening...You're jealous!" Her face burned bright red, revealing that he was right. He took this as his chance and gained the upper hand, spinning her around and placing his hands on either side of her so that she was trapped inbetween him and the wall," I'm flattered, of course, but I must confess I'm also a bit disappointed. I didn't imagine a lady of your stature to succumb to the green-eyed monster."

"For the love of-," Lucina tried to keep her resolve, but the closer his face came, the more flustered she became," N-Nothing could be further from the truth!"

"Oh, I think I touched a nerve...," He teased playfully, using this advantage to inch even closer to her.

"You're being-," Her voice cracked when his forehead came into contact with hers," R-Ridiculous."

He chuckled, his lips brushing ever so lightly against hers. All thoughts about earlier were merely a foggy memory now, replaced with all thoughts having to do with Lucina and the fact that she wasn't pulling away from him. He searched for any sign of resistance, knowing that he would stop if he was truly making her uncomfortable, but he was met with something an emotion he couldn't quite recognize; Her deep blue eyes held a mix of curiosity, defiance, and nerves. It seemed like she was both trying to catch her breath and challenging him to take it away. He lowered one of his hands and reached for one of her hands, surprised to find it clenched into a tight fist. As soon as his fingers made contact with hers, she hesitantly opened it up and allowed him to scoop her hand in his. He brought it up to his lips and gently pressed them against her knuckles," Am I making you nervous?"

"I-If you're trying t-to seduce me-," Her breath caught when the tip of his nose grazed hers," I-It's n-not w-working."

"I can feel your face heating up from here, darling," He smirked, lightly releasing her hand and using his knuckles to brush some loose hair from her cheek," If you want me to stop..."

"I...I...," Inigo unfolded his hand and cupped her cheek with it, watching as she shuddered underneath his touch. Her eyes flickered from his lips to his eyes, her heart pounding a mile a minute," Y-you are a-a shameless flirt."

It wasn't a no, but her response wasn't a yes either. As much as he wanted to kiss her that very moment, he knew that she wasn't ready yet. Inigo smiled sadly and dropped his hands, finally giving her some breathing space," That may be true, but you are the only one...," He mentally kicked himself, reminding himself that he had unintentionally reduced the girl he loved into a stuttering mess. Flirting probably wasn't the best route to take at the moment," Never mind. Well, I'll be on my way-"

"Wait!" The brunette stopped in his tracks when Lucina reached forward and little grabbed his elbow, gently pulling him back to face her. She looked like she was grappling for the right words to say, continuously shrinking underneath Inigo's curious gaze. He was about to ask her what was on her mind when she confidently stepped forward, grabbed his shoulders tightly, and stood on her toes to press her lips against his.

The warmth he had longed for with every woman he had come across filled every inch of his body tenfold when her lips made contact with his, hitting him like a pillow to the face. He felt himself freeze up with shock, staring at the girl he was head over heels in love with in shock instead of actually kissing her back.

Unfortunately for him, the kiss was over in a matter of seconds, leaving both parties breathless. Inigo felt his hands grasp her waist, because naga knows what would happen to him if he didn't have an anchor of sorts. Her hands remained firm on his shoulders as she tried to slow down her heartbeat and regain her composure. After about a minute of the pair standing in the same position for almost a full minute, Lucina managed to speak," W-We were under the mistletoe."

"T-That we were."

"Right," She nodded and dropped her hands, taking a few deep breaths before patting his arm softly," Merry Christmas."

Inigo couldn't tear his eyes off of her, still in a shocked state over what just happened," M-Merry Christmas."

He watched as she took off towards her aunt Lissa, leaving the brunette to question if he was dreaming or not. Did...did that just happen? Did Lucina actually kiss him? Him?! Inigo felt a huge smile make its way onto his face, and it took all of his resolve not to do a happy dance.

"Thank gods that finally happened," Inigo furrowed his eyebrow in confusion and turned to find Novak standing behind him with an equally large grin," I was starting to get worried that neither of you would do it."

"What are you talking about? Weren't you playing truth or dare?" The boy asked suspiciously. Inigo cringed when a different idea popped into his head," Please say that you're not going to try to kiss me too."

"Don't worry, I'm not interested in you that in that way," He replied cheekily," You are right about one thing, though; I was playing truth or dare. You know who else was playing truth or dare? Hadlee, Emmy, and Noire. I would've sent Nah in there if Lucina didn't Intervene, but seeing that it was Noire making a move on you, I felt that her jealousy would get the better of her," He patted his shoulder cheerfully," Merry Christmas, buddy."

Inigo stared at his rival for a full minute in shock when Novak's actions finally set in; he had set it up so that Lucina would get jealous and talk to him. Although he was flattered that the boy would go this far to please him, there was still one blaring question buzzing through his mind," Wait, don't you have a crush on Lucina?"

"Are you kidding me?" He chuckled," I'm the one that is constantly trying to set the two of you up! No one wants to see you two together more than me!" He had to keep himself from breaking into an even deeper fit of laughter when he saw the baffled expression on Inigo's face," Did you honestly think that I could like Lucina like that when you were so obviously enamored with her?"

A serge of guilt hit the sixteen year old. This entire time, he hated Novak because he was under the impression that he was trying to take his girl while in reality, he was trying to set them up. Gods, he really could be stupid sometimes," I guess you're right. I'm an idiot for not noticing your efforts sooner."

He waved it off," Hey, don't worry about it."

Inigo nodded hesitantly," If you say so...," His friend gave him a thumbs up and turned to return to his game, only stopping when the brunette spoke up again," Actually, can I ask you something before you go?" Novak paused and tilted his head, silently urging him to ask away," Do you think that Lucina could possibly...I know that it seems insane...and impossible...," He took a deep breath and started over," Do you think she returns my feelings?"

Novak chuckled and patted his shoulder one last time," That's something you'll have to find out yourself."

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Nate hated himself. It was bad enough that he had chickened out of doing his duty and destroying the vessel, but now his brother was bedridden for the next two weeks due to his injury and his nightmares were starting to plague him uncontrollably. It was getting so bad that he couldn't even bring himself to try and sleep anymore. He knew that his parents were aware and extremely worried about his health, but he couldn't show any weakness. Not when Anders was relying so heavily on him.

Due to his newfound exhaustion, Nate found himself sitting in the hallway outside of the band room, avoiding any source of noise. Why was it he always chose to sit out of parties? He was starting to hold a grudge against himself for being so antisocial, but at the moment, he could hardly gather the energy move.

"Uh...Nate, was it?" The dark haired boy lazily rose his eyes to meet with familiar violet colored orbs staring back at him with a troubled expression," Are you okay?"

He searched his memories, but all he could remember was a hazy picture of a girl that looked like her. They had met before...right? He took a deep breath and allowed his eyes to flutter shut for a few seconds, hoping that the girl would just go away if he ignored her for long enough. After all, that's what everyone else who had come across him had done.

Oddly enough, she didn't move from her spot. If anything, she crouched down to his level and pressed her hand against his forehead, flinching when his eyes shot open. She immediately withdrew her palm and sheepishly rubbed her hands together," Oh, I'm sorry! You're just really pale, so I was making sure you weren't sick."

Why did she care? It shouldn't have mattered to this girl whether he was sick or not. He narrowed his eyes at her, only finding one clear answer to his question," We've met before, haven't we?"

The blue haired girl seemed almost taken aback by his response," Uh, yeah...we did. You protected me from that guy at the party," She furrowed her eyebrows worriedly," Don't you remember?"

She seemed nervous. Her expression was so familiar to him that Nate actually was starting to feel concerned that he couldn't place the face to the name. Was his lack of sleep actually effecting him this badly? He grimaced, hating how her face was engraved in his memory without any name to go with it," Who are you?"

The girl pouted, seemingly offended that he didn't know who she was," It's Marie, remember?"

"Actually no, I don't," Nate shut his eyes again and leaned his head back against the wall," I don't think you've properly introduced yourself before now."

"Oh...," She rubbed her arm sheepishly," Sorry."

Nate didn't feel the need to respond to her apology, so he settled with trying to get some rest. It was so silent that Nate figured she left, so he nearly had a panic attack when he opened his eyes to find her sitting next to him," What are you still doing here?"

She winced at the harshness of his tone," I...I don't know-"

"Yes, you do," The ebony haired boy cut her off, not willing to put up with a faulty excuse," Answer honestly."

Marie frowned and continued to nervously fiddle with her hands," I...I needed to ask you something about the night we first met," He closed his eyes again, trying to think back to what she was referring to. He felt his eyelids steadily grow heavier as he slowly became oblivious to his surroundings. The last thing he heard before blacking out was Marie's soft question," Did you kill that man?"

"Now, she's going to come with me-"

Nate felt his eyes flicker over to the blue haired girl whimpering in the corner, looking anxiously between the two men. Her violet eyes were glossed over with unshed tears, and her entire body seemed to be shaking. Rugor was waving her over, growing progressively frustrated when she started backing away in the opposite direction. If Nate didn't do something soon, the man would hurt her.

He didn't know what about the girl drove him to do so, but the dark haired boy finally whipped out his gun and aimed it at Rugor in order to protect her," I don't think so."

The tall man rose his eyebrow and chuckled," What, do you suddenly feel like being a hero? Do you even know what her name is, because she looks just as terrified of you as she is to me. Why does it matter to you what happens to her? Aren't you planning on killing someone else? This should be easy for you-"

"Get out of here before I shoot you," Nate threatened, only causing the man to laugh harder," What? You just said that killing someone else should be...what was that? Oh yeah," He turned the safety off," Easy."

"Nate? Nate!"

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and turned back the the girl, only to find himself in a burning building facing what appeared to be a locked door. He immediately pressed her ear against the wood and froze when he heard frantic coughing coming from the inside," Hold on, Marie! I'll get you out of there!"

"No! It's a trap! Run while you can!"

"What are you talking about?" He reached for the doorknob, but hissed in pain when the metal burned his hand," You'll die if I leave you in here!"

Nate was met with sobs," I'm...s-sorry! I-I'm so sorry, but I c-can't let you die for me."

"What?!" He frantically pounded on the door, trying to pull her attention away from any of the wicked thoughts she was currently entertaining," No! Marie!"

"Nate?"

"Marie!"

"Nate! Nate, wake up!" Nate felt a rush of cool air hit him when his eyes opened again, revealing the now familiar blue haired girl shaking him awake. He firmly grabbed her wrists in an attempt to cause her to stop jostling him and catch his breath, causing her to squeak in surprise. He frantically scanned her face, checking for any source of a scar or burn. When he came across nothing drastic, he finally released her, leaned back against the wall, and tried to slow his rapidly beating heart.

It was just another stupid nightmare. They had haunted him ever since the assassin attacked him, usually replaying the same scenes on what seemed like a constant loop. What really got him was that he never dreamed about the flaming door before. He only dreamt of memories and his prediction of what happened to Anders that night. Was this also a prediction? The thought alone made his chest clench up with dread.

Marie waited until his breathing was steady to speak up," Are you okay?"

"Did I fall asleep again?"

"Yeah," She bit her lip," I would've let you sleep longer, but you were calling out my name. You seemed really scared, so I just figured...," The freshman sighed," I'm sorry for troubling you. Maybe it would have been better if I allowed you to keep sleeping-"

"No!" He blurted, frantically trying to avoid having yet another nightmare," I don't need any more sleep."

Marie furrowed her eyebrows," Are you sure? You look like you need to get some rest."

He stared at her in exasperation, wondering why on earth she was so apprehensive. It was bad enough that she kept reappearing in his dreams, but now she was starting to stick around him in real life. All he knew was that if he became any closer to her than he already was, she would find herself in danger.

Nate needed to get out of there. If his dream was predicting some sort of a grim future, there was no way in hell he was going to allow it to happen. He shakily stood up, ignoring the rush of blood that pounded in his head and using the wall as his only support," I need to go."

Much to his disappointment, she stood up and tried to follow him," Are you sure this is the best idea? I was serious when I said you didn't look healthy."

"I'm...," Without warning, black dots began to cloud his vision. Nate felt himself quickly losing control over his body, and before he knew it, everything had gone dark.

* * *

**I kicked off my return with a kiss with Inigo and Lucina! Now, this doesn't mean that they are a couple (yet), but they are moving forward. Novak is a supporter of Lucigo (let's be real, he's been rooting for them forever). I'm going to go a little bit away from my usual chapter review and talk about Fire Emblem; Conquest. I haven't had the chance to play Birthright yet, but Conquest was freaking amazing! I ended up marrying Silas (Cyrus), but he was a little too nice for me (I discovered that I am drawn to the layered, oddball characters). Yes, he is a sweetheart, but...I don't know. I think that I'll either marry Laslow (INIGO) or Keaton next, but I'll see where I'm going (I want to marry Kaze too, but I might wait to do that until Birthright). Anyways, let's go back to the beginning of the chapter! Henry got to bond a little bit with Gaius, who is also his roommate. Frederick, who is super protective of his kids, hunted down Henry and made him promise to protect Lissa and his children. Now to the juicy part! Inigo's plan reminds me of one of my very subtle plans to try and get together with a boy; an extreme long shot that needed a lot of luck. Fortunately for Inigo, Novak stepped in and started sending girls over to kiss him in order to make Lucina jealous. The rest was history! We ended with Nate, who is having nightmares that relive his rocky past and, in some cases, give him a prediction from the future (sound familiar?). Marie, who is very conflicted about how she feels about Nate, tried to help him feel better. Unfortunately, his lack of sleep caused him to finally pass out. Review time!**

**Kit-Cat Star:** **Hello! Sorry it took so long to finally reply! I liked the way Inigo figured it out as well, because it showed more of his personality. He is also pretty smart, but in a way that is different than Laurent's intelligence. Inigo and Owain are the funniest supports in the entire story, so writing it (with the addition of Levy) was a lot of fun! Thank you for reviewing!  
**

**Golden-Lightning:**** Haha, you're first realization was like me, except I looked at myself in the mirror and said," Gee, you should finally write again." Gah, Fates came out and I beat it in a week because it was that good! I hope that you guys are also getting to experience it as well! Thank you, Inigo and Lucina are starting to get a lot of attention in this fanfic. Oh my god, that is so sad! As terrible as that is, Gerome's flashback is, as odd as it is to say, darker. Minerva does play a part in it, though. I can't admit anything, that will lead to spoilers (not like I deny it when people ask, lol). Thank you for reviewing!**

**Rainbowpanda5000:** **Hello! I am so sorry that I wasn't able to respond earlier, especially after the wonderful things you said. I'm so flattered that you used some of my S supports (which ones did you use? I'm curious)! I just beat the new fire emblem (only conquest)! And before I go on, ODIN IS A DARK MAGE WHICH MEANS THAT HENRY IS PROBABLY HIS FATHER WHICH MEANS THAT ONE OF MY COUPLES (LissaxHenry, of course) IS FINALLY GETTING SOME ATTENTION! YAY! Sorry I freaked out on you, I'm just feeling very triumphant. Thank you for reviewing!**

**myra-is-a-tactician:**** Thank you so much! It made me feel so much better to have you support and patience. Don't worry about updating yourself. I look at it as taking a break, getting your priorities in order, and organizing what you want to do with your story. Taking the time to write quality stuff is better that shooting out things that is just there to meet a deadline. Thank you for your review! **

**The Payday:**** Hello! I'm glad you caught up! Thank you, I'm happy that you like what you've written so far! Haha, I'm not sure if anyone expected the Hewitt unveiling! It makes me feel proud as a writer. Thank you for reviewing! **

**Thank you guys for the wonderful reviews! I am so excited to continue posting because I have wonderful fans like you! The next chapter will be a continuation of the Christmas theme, except that it will actually take place on Christmas. I'm excited because I get to introduce a pair of people that I have briefly mentioned before! Get ready for some fluff (and per usual, a little angst). Thank you guys for reading, and I'll see you next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	49. Chapter 49 Christmas Memories

**Hey guys! Sorry this is getting posted so late in the day, I had to write most of the chapter today because it's tech week. Anywho, it's Christmas (not really, but in the story, let's just say it is)! As stated in the chapter name, this focuses mostly on memories and is even mainly made up of a flashback including a couple we've only seen together twice! I hope you're excited! Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

With Sumia leaving to visit her parents for winter break, Cynthia was left to stay with Gaius for the remaining two weeks. As cool as her mother was, she was incredibly excited to finally spend some one-on-one time with her dad. She had been trying to find the right opportunity to spend more time with him, but with the arrests, assassins, and occasion of her parents finally becoming a couple, she hadn't found the right time to hang out.

Because of this, Cynthia would not leave her father alone. He could hardly turn around without having his daughter standing there with yet another insane request. At first Gaius found it endearing, but after three days of having a shadow, he was staring to long for Sumia to return.

When Christmas Eve finally came around, Gaius dug out an old Christmas movie and stuck his daughter in front of it so that he could take a two hour nap. The plan seemed flawless at the time, but before he could even consider closing his eyes, the redhead girl was sitting patiently in front of him with a comb in her hand," Father! Will you brush my hair? Pleeease?"

"Er, I'm sorry, Cynthia, but I'm a little busy watching this movie at the moment... ," He braced himself for the worst, but his daughter simply shrugged and calmly placed the comb back in her bag,"...You haven't left my side lately," He stated," Are you sure you don't have other things to do?"

The fifteen year old giggled," Well, you said that spending time with me was fun! Riiight?" She jumped to her feet and took Gaius's hand in hers, attempting to pull him off the couch," Hey, why don't you come to town with me? We'll spend the whole day together!"

Gaius grimaced, thinking about the numerous times he had already taken his daughter out into Ylisse," Uh...now?"

"Yes, now! We'll walk the streets and visit the market and hold hands the whole time! Then we can find a tasty cake shop and when evening falls we can go caroling and-"

"All right, Cynthia, that's enough now," The boy pulled his hand back and rubbed his temples tiredly, trying to find the right words," Look, I know we're family, but even family needs time apart sometimes-"

Cynthia ignored him and continued to talk over her father,"-and eat pie, and it'll totally be the best day ever!"

He bit down on his lollipop to prevent him from groaning in annoyance," Are you even listening to me?"

The redheaded girl held her head in shame and nodded, unintentionally making him drown in his own guilt. Why did reprimanding his daughter have to remind him of kicking a puppy? Gaius opened his mouth to apologize when she nervously stammered," You...will remember me, won't you, Father? Even once the Cynthia of this world is born?" The words hit him like a punch to the gut. Why on earth would she think something like that? Gaius felt himself think back to his own parents and how they died when he was barely old enough to look after himself. Did he do that to his daughter as well? Cynthia mistook his dread for anger and frantically tried to explain herself," You see, I DO understand how this time-travel stuff works. I know you're not my real father. That man existed in another history," She sniffled, gaining a melancholy look that most of the future children had in her eyes. Gaius only had to catch a glimpse of it before deciding that he never wanted to see it on her ever again," So as soon as the me from this time is born, I promise to leave you alone. It's just that...until that happens, I want us to spend as much time together as we can. Then, when you have a proper family, at least we'll still have our memories."

Gaius scrambled to find the right words," I... I didn't realize..."

"Oh, don't get me wrong. I'm ever so grateful for this time. You've shown me what it's like to have a father, and you've been so nice to me," She shrugged hopelessly," But I also know that, in the end, your love is meant for the other me," Cynthia sheepishly wiped her eyes and snickered when she saw Gaius doing the same," Father, are you...crying? Oh, silly! I didn't mean to make you sad...It's nothing to be sad about! Besides, we can't very well have my hero all teary eyed, can we?! I don't want to remember you like this. I want to remember you how you really were. Strong, and kind, and brave...My father, my hero...and my friend."

"Oh Cynthia...," He gently got to his feet and pulled his daughter into a tight hug," What made you think I would ever want you out of my life? Yes, I can't have you around me all the time, but that doesn't mean that I want to replace you," Gaius stroked her hair comfortingly," Look at it this way; are you replacing your father with me?"

The redhead pulled away, looking borderline insulted that he would even suggest such a thing," I would never! You are both my fathers!"

"See?" He chuckled," That means that even when I have a little Cynthia, you're still going to be my daughter. What makes you think I'd let you go that easily?" He cupped one of her cheeks in his hands and brushed a tear away with his thumb," When you first introduced yourself, I promised that I would not let you have the same experience I did when I was growing up. I may be a thief, a liar, and so many other things that you should not look up to, I do keep my promises."

She gave him a watery smile," Thank you, daddy."

Gaius responded by kissing her forehead," My pleasure, Cupcake."

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Times were tough for Ruby. While being pregnant should have been a joy, it was something that she expected to experience when she was older. Having a child turned out to be similar to adopting an odd animal; as much as she loved it, the people around her would give her odd looks once she started showing.

This unintentionally led to Dimitri's parents forcing them to leave the house until they "figured out their problem". Now, this wouldn't have been a huge deal if it had not been for the fact that their dorms were closed and they had nowhere to go. Dimitri scrambled to find a spot and was about to give up when Priam, a friend of his from band, offered to let them stay in his apartment until they could get back on their feet.

Despite the fact that fitting two people on a couch was a doozy and his landlady kept giving them weird looks, things finally started to settle down. That is, until Ricken, Nowi, Nah, and surprisingly, Novak showed up the day before Christmas Eve to celebrate the holiday with them. Ricken and Novak went out with Dimitri to scramble together a Christmas dinner, Nowi and Nah forced Ruby to sit and tell them everything," Tell me how you got married!"

Nah shook her head in disagreement," No, I want to know what their first date was like!"

"That's not interesting at all! What I really want to know is what went down when-"

Ruby cringed," No offense, but that's not something I want to talk about."

The green haired girl rolled her eyes," No, that's not what I meant at all, silly! I wanted to know how you two first fell in love!"

The blonde nodded in relief, thinking back to the beginning of the year," Well, it all started when we were assigned to be partners in my biology class..."

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_Ruby narrowed her eyes at the name "Dimitri Mork" in displeasure. She was so close to getting her bachelor degree, only needing a few classes her and there to finish up her schooling. One of those classes, fortunately, was her favorite subject; Biology. She was looking forward to it, knowing that all of her friends were also taking the class. _

_So why, out of all of the people her professor could have chosen from, did she get partnered up with Dimitri Mork, the biggest player in school? Ruby groaned in annoyance and turned away from the list, only to run headfirst into the last person she wanted to see. Now that she was up close, she could somewhat understand why all the girls on campus were so obsessed with him. Dimitri was the kind of cute that made your stomach flip for no reason, and despite the fact that he seemed to cocky for his own good, he practically emitted self-confidence," Hey, short-stuff!"_

_The girl frowned at the sudden nickname, losing all admiration of the boy in an instant," I'm not that short."_

_"You're shorter than my brother," Dimitri pointed out cheekily," Which makes you either a midget or a munchkin. Tell me, what land to you hail from? The Shire?"_

_She rolled her eyes, ultimately deciding to ignore him by walking to her desk. It took him a few seconds to realize what had just happened, and once he finally did, he brushed it off and sauntered after her. Ruby watched in disdain as he positioned his feet on their lab table and rested his hands behind his head, winking at a group of girls in the corner of the room," What are you doing?"_

_The brunette smirked triumphantly when an irruption of giggles sprouted from the girls," What are you talking about? Isn't it obvious?"_

_"You're right; I should rephrase myself," With one swift motion, she pushed his feet off the desk," What should you be doing?"_

_He pouted playfully," What are you, my mother?"_

_"Oh, I'm sorry that I want a good grade," Ruby turned her back on him," I suggest you act maturely if you want the same."_

_He rose his eyebrow questioningly, but much to her surprise, didn't say another word. She almost did a double take to make sure that she didn't suddenly become dead, but was surprised to find that he was staring at her. When he realized he had gained her attention, he winked at her and finally turned to his textbook. _

_The rest of class went by in an odd way; he was either staring at her or teasing her in some way or another, making it very hard to focus on the subject. She was so annoyed by the cocky boy that nearly cried in relief when they were dismissed. Dimitri patted her head cheekily as she gathered her supplies," See ya tomorrow, half-pint."_

_Ruby sent the boy a glare that could scare even the toughest Grimleal member, wanting so desperately to wipe his annoying cute smirk off of his face," If you make one more quip about my size, I swear that I'll-"_

_"What? You seem like the person to pair warnings with empty threats."_

_The blonde pursed her lips, but before she could chew him out, her friend grabbed her arm," Come on, you promised me that we'd see the new movie...," She trailed off, looking inbetween the two," Am I interrupting something?"_

_"Not at all," Ruby answered, keeping her eyes firm on the boy," Come on, let's go."_

_The next two weeks repeated the same events daily; Dimitri would pick on Ruby, Ruby would desperately try to ignore him, and one would exit the class trying to ignore the other as he flirted while the other found himself becoming fond of his short science partner. Things remained that way for the longest time, up until the first day of the third week. _

_Ruby sat at her desk, double checking the facts in her essay to make sure it was perfect. She rolled her eyes when the familiar figure of her science partner walked by and settled himself next to her, mentally preparing herself for defense._

_But nothing came. He silently pulled out his textbook and propped his elbows on the table so that he could hold his head in his hands. The blonde suspiciously peeked up from her book to see what was going on, only to find him rubbing his eyes tiredly," Dimitri?"_

_The boy froze, keeping his gaze forward to avoid her intrusive gaze," I'm not in the mood to talk today."_

_That wasn't like him at all. He seemed especially eager to jump in on any conversation, so him turning it away caused her stomach to churn. Ruby frowned and reached out to gently touch his shoulder," What's wrong?"_

_She didn't know what she was expecting to happen, but she felt a surge of worry when he shook her hand off and growled," Leave me alone."_

_Despite the fact that Ruby had hated this guy for a solid two weeks, the maternal bone in her body was screaming at her. Something was definitely wrong, and what kind of person would she be if she let it spiral into something much worse? _

_The blonde waited until the end of class to act upon it. As soon as they were dismissed, Dimitri pushed all of his supplies into his bag and rushed out the door. Ruby didn't hesitate grabbing her stuff and following after him. She had to admit, it was quite the challenge to try and catch up with someone whose legs were the size of half of her body. Still, she managed to keep a steady pace with him, only stopping when a group of boys started to surround him. She ducked behind and tree to make sure none of them would notice her eavesdropping. It was one of the few times her size actually came in handy, because no one seemed to notice her presence._

_"You've got some nerve, Mork," A boy Ruby recognized as Nombry, one of the leading jocks on the hockey team, spat._

_"I already told you that I didn't know that she was your girlfriend," Dimitri defended weakly._

_She cautiously looked out from her hiding spot, only to find her lab partner with his arms pinned behind his back by one of Nombry's friends. She gulped, gaining a very bad feeling about what was about to happen. The redhead advanced on Dimitri, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him down to his height," Don't give me that bullshit, or I might just forget about your girlfriend and mistake her for a-"_

_"You're going to leave her out of this," Ruby felt a chill run down her spine when she heard the sheer amount of venom in the normally flirty boy's voice," That was part of the deal-"_

_Nombry cut him off by sending his fist into Dimitri's stomach, smirking in pleasure as he watched the boy crumple in agony," You are in no position to be giving me orders," He sneered tauntingly," You know what you're feeling now? It's what I felt like when I realized that my girl was getting harassed by the biggest flirt on campus," To emphasize his point, he kneed Dimitri in the same spot he had just punched him, causing a pained yelp to spring from his lips," Little did I know that you had changed her," Nombry slammed his fist into the boy's cheek," You made her feel important, and now she complains that the only thing I care about is Hockey," He pulled Dimitri into a chokehold, watching in satisfaction as his victim gasped for air," You're the reason that she broke up with me, and now you're going to pay-"_

_Ruby didn't know what motivated her to do so, but without warning, she burst from her hiding spot and pried Nombry's hand from her lab partner's throat," Stop it, you're hurting him!"_

_For a second, everything was still. Dimitri stared at her in pure horror, looking like he was going to be sick at any moment. Ruby felt her gaze rise from the boy to Nombry, who was looking down at her with a sick sense of glee. She started to back away towards the brunette, but the bully grabbed her arm and yanked her back next to him," Oh, this is too good!"_

_"Ruby, you need to get out of here! Go! Now!" Dimitri yelled desperately while fighting to break away from Nombry's friend," You're in danger! Go!"_

_She felt her heart drop at the raw fear in his voice, but if she let it show, Nombry and his lackey would have the advantage. Ruby took a deep breath, brushed off his warning, and glared at the hockey player," You've already done enough damage! What are you trying to do? Kill him?! Hurting Dimitri won't bring your girlfriend back! If anything, it'll scare her away-"_

_She squeaked when he tightened his grip on her arm and pulled her up higher," What the hell do you know? If I were you, I'd watch what I was saying. I don't want to break the deal I have made."_

_Ruby tried to pull away, but it only caused her more pain in the end. There was no way she could win a fight with this guy, which mean she had to use a different tactic to protect both of them," Let us go, or else."_

_Nombry laughed at her," Or else what?"_

_"I'll scream."_

_"Ooh, I'm so scared-" Ruby looked from Nombry to Dimtiri, and before she could chicken out, she screamed like her life depended on it. The two hockey players shared shocked looks, obviously expecting that she wouldn't go through with her threat. They immediately dropped her lab partner and took off before they could get caught. _

_Ruby dove forward and caught Dimitri before he could hit the ground, lowering the both of them down so that they were sitting," Dimitri?" She cupped his face in her hands and grimaced when she saw a purplish bruise growing on his cheek," Are you alright? Do I need to call 911? Oh gods, I was so useless-" _

_She was cut off when he dove forward and hugged her tightly," Don't do that ever again," He choked out," They could have seriously hurt you, and I...," Ruby paused and glanced up at him, only to find his eyes pooled with worry," They didn't hurt you, right?" She shook her head, causing him to sigh in relief. He shifted his body away from her, but still leaned heavily on her shoulder," You saved me."_

_The blonde felt a blush spread across her cheeks," Don't thank me. I should've stopped them sooner-"_

_"You shouldn't have had to stop them in the first place," Dimitri affirmed," I brought this upon myself, and I should have been the only one that had to deal with them."_

_Ruby grimaced when the bruise on his cheek started to turn purple," Why didn't you fight back?"_

_He rubbed his arm sheepishly," It was part of some stupid deal. You see, I accidentally flirted with that guy's girlfriend, leading to their breakup. In order to exact revenge on me, he followed me around for a week to see if I had a special girl in my life that he could use against me."_

_Ruby kept her eyes on the ground as a pang of newfound jealousy coursed through her. The sincerity that her once cocky lab partner was using caused her heart to pound and face to grow warm, and she wanted to be the one that saw this side of him instead of his special girl," Did they find one?"_

_"Yeah," The brunette replied almost bitterly," They threatened me by saying they'd get back at me by using her. Usually I wouldn't be that worried over it, seeing that I flirt in a daily basis and can't even remember half the girls that I talk too, but...," His voice suddenly became tight," I couldn't risk it. Not with your safety on the line. There was no way in hell I'd let anything happen to you, so I offered myself instead."_

_"That was very brave-hold on!" Ruby whipped her head back up, only to find his face frozen in terror," D-Did you just say-"_

_"I guess I did...," He cleared his throat awkwardly," Wow...Usually it's so easy to talk to girls, but now that I actually really like one, I have no idea what to say." _

_Ruby could only stare at him in disbelief," Y-You're lying to me, aren't you? This has to be some sort of a sick joke-"_

_"It's not," He reaffirmed," Then again, I never could properly flirt with you. Maybe I should just find a different way to communicate," Dimitri added flirtatiously. _

_"...I don't think I understand."_

_The brunette smirked and tipped her chin up," Allow me to demonstrate," He tilted his head down and gently pressed his lips against hers, forgetting all the pain that he had just gone through to protect her. Ruby stiffened at first, but the fuzzy feeling encompassing her entire body caused her to relax into his embrace. _

_The girl moved her hands down to his waist, unintentionally adding pressure to his new bruises. He flinched, causing her to immediately pull back and try to scramble away," Oh gods, I'm so-I didn't mean-I'm such an idiot! I should just-"_

_She tried to climb away in order to keep herself from hurting him again, but he quickly grabbed her waist and pulled her even closer than before. Dimitri chuckled at the bright shade of red her face blushed and nuzzled her neck," You're too cute."_

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"Wowie, Ruby, I didn't know that you were so tough!" Nowi clapped cheerfully at the end of the story," You didn't even fight or anything!"

The young woman felt herself blush as she waved off the compliment," Oh, I'm not that cool..."

"Yes, you are," The young woman felt her face heat up even more when her husband snuck up behind her and tucked his chin on top of her head," But you forgot to tell the part of the story where I took my revenge and Nombry some of his own medicine!"

Ruby gave him a dull look," That never happened."

Dimitri smiled cheekily," Sure it did."

Ricken and Novak followed the young man into the room and made themselves comfortable as the couple bickered with each other. Naturally, Ricken gravitated towards his girlfriend, cuddling with her as she giggled at the the conversation. Novak awkwardly watched his parents, unsure if he should believe his father or his mother.

Unfortunately, Ruby made that choice for him," Hey Novak, do you think that Dimitri took down a hockey player that was twice his size?"

"Hey, that's cheating! You can't bring him into this!" Dimitri whined," He's obviously going to pick his mother over me!"

Novak felt his heart drop at his dad's slip up. The blonde woman blinked in confusion and looked inbetween the two boys," Did...Did you just say I was his mother?"

Dimitri's face lost all of its color when he realized what he had just done," I...uh...well..."

The seventeen year old watched the situation play out, feeling the dread that he had finally buried start to pile back up again. What if his mom rejected him? Having Dimitri do it at first was bad enough, but the loss of his real mother was too fresh. Rejection from Ruby would tear him apart.

Yet, if he lied to her, what would happen? Would he spend every night wondering what would of happened if he told the truth? Novak bit his lip hesitantly, ultimately deciding that now was the time to be honest," It's...its true. This is going to sound weird, but a group of the Shepherds' children traveled back in time from the future to protect our families," He choked up," In my future, you two are dead. I...I know that you might not want to accept me right now, but I missed you so much."

Ruby felt her eyes gloss over. Novak was her son? That would make sense to why he looked so much like Dimitri and why he helped her the morning that she got sick. She slowly brought her hand up to cover her mouth in shock, shaking Ina mixture of relief and grief. It was terrible that she wasn't there for her son in the future, but the fact that he was alive and had them for at least a little bit caused some of her worries to die down. She reached open her arms and beckoned Novak over to hug her," Why wouldn't I accept you?"

Novak tried to hold back a sob as he rocketed forward into his mother's embrace, unable to keep his tears in once he made contact with her. He buried his face in her shoulder and sobbed, holding onto her with all his might," Thank you!"

She wiped her cheeks, surprised to find them wet with tears," I love you, Novak."

"I love you too, mom!"

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Christmas at the Exalts house was larger than it had ever been before; Usually, it was just Emmeryn, Chrom, and Lissa. While it was heartbreaking that this was their first Christmas without their oldest sister, the large additions to their family helped fill the hole. The large group of Exalts stuffed themselves in the living room that evening, thinking back to all the gifts and memories that were made during the day. Chrom sat on the couch with Robin, who that had insisted come, snuggled in his arms. Hewitt and Aversa were invited, but they decided to have their own small celebration with themselves, Gangrel, and the twins (everyone was positive that Anna had snuck away from her family to spend some time with them as well). Frederick and Tharja sat on the opposite end of the couch and drank hot chocolate, watching as the children conversed. Henry, who was invited as well, settled on the armchair with Lissa in his lap and kept a steady stream of Christmas puns going. Lucina and Noire sat by the counter, looking at hideous (or in Lucina's case, beautiful) Christmas sweaters online. Morgan sat on the ground, holding Orie, and stayed invested in a crazy story Owain and Emmy took turns telling.

Eventually, Morgan noticed that Orie had fallen asleep and offered to put her in her crib. He quietly exited the living the room and started to head upstairs when he heard a knock at the door. The blue haired boy tilted his head curiously, wondering who would visit on a holiday so late in the day, but went to answer it anyways.

When he opened the door, he was met a couple who seemed to be in their mid-sixties starting down at him. They seemed confused at first, but the woman seemed to discover something and pointed to his hair," Look at his hair; it's blue just like his father's."

Morgan furrowed his eyebrows," How do you know who my father is?"

"Have you forgotten us already, Chrom?" The man asked. The fourteen year old didn't know enter to feel relieved or not, but knowing that he could not let them discover his true identity, he decided to keep quiet," It's Mr. and Mrs. Warry, remember? We would look after you two when you were younger after the tragedy involving your parents."

Wait, were these Frederick's parents? Morgan blinked in confusion," I didn't know you were visiting."

Mr. Wary opened his mouth to respond, but his wife cut him off and pointed at the child I'm Morgan's arms," Who is that?"

"This is Noire," He replied slowly. Morgan held Orie closer to him, recalling a fuzzy memory of Frederick mentioning how distant he was with his parents. Was it because they disapproved of his marriage? If that wasn't true, then how did they not know their own granddaughter? Before he could ask, he felt a pair of hands land on his shoulder," Morgan, who are these people?"

He looked up at Robin in relief and ignored the confused looks that the couple were giving them," I think that they're Frederick's parents."

In the blink of an eye, the white haired girl's persona changed into something much more dark and cold," I see. Morgan, why don't you go upstairs and put Orie in her crib. I'll take care of these two," Her son frowned at the sudden change, but decided not to argue. Once he was out of sight, Robin crossed her arms in disgust," You better have a good reason to be here, because you deserve to freeze out there."

Mrs. Warry narrowed her eyes," Who even are you?"

"A friend," Robin replied quickly," Now why the hell are you here?"

"Our car broke down and we need money to repair it," Mr. Wary answered," We figured that since the Exalts are so rich, they'll just pay us as a way to make up for when we had to look after them when they were children."

"Yes, can we speak with Emmeryn?" Mrs. Warry added.

Sweet Naga, they didn't know she was dead. How on earth could they ignore something so impactful in their son's life? Not to mention that they had the nerve to ask for money? Robin clenched her fists," The Exalts don't owe you anything."

"Ugh, whom does this girl think she even is?" Without warning, she pushed herself past the sixteen year old, dragging her husband inside the house and into the living room," Mrs. Exalt, we require your service-" Mrs. Warry stopped dead when her eyes fell on Frederick and Tharja," What are you two doing here?"

Robin rushed in after them, sending an apologetic look towards the couple," I tried to stop them, but-"

"I see you're still married to your whore wife," Mrs. Wary interrupted, causing both Frederick and Tharja to jump from their seats," That's not important right now, we can discuss it later. Where is Emmeryn?" Chrom, Lissa, and Frederick all paled at the mention of the deceased sister. Silence overtook the room, leaving the mother growing progressively more irritated," Well? We don't have all night."

Robin squeezed her eyes shut, knowing that she would have to be the one to tell the news," She was murdered a few months ago by a Grimleal terrorist organization."

Mr. Warry grimaced, but his wife only cocked her head," How irresponsible. Your family seems to drop like flies nowadays," This time, Chrom was the one that jumped to his feet, only to have Lissa grab his arm and pull him back down," Where are we going to get the money we need now?"

"Get out of my house," The pair looked over at Frederick in surprise, only to find their son completely livid," I'll give you a minute."

"Don't be rude," Mr. Warry chided," We only need a little bit of money, and that hardly compares to the money that we spent raising you."

Frederick's eyebrow twitched," Oh? What about the years of emotional abuse and eventual rejection? Not only that, but you verbally attacked my wife and my godchildren without batting an eyelash. You said that I'd never amount to anything, but now that I finally have, you're asking for my help?" He shook his head," I won't repeat myself again."

His parents rolled their eyes," It's too bad you didn't turn out more like your father," Mrs. Warry tutted," Just know that when your marriage falls apart, you are not welcome back to our house."

"Out."

Frederick followed his parents out of the living room to make sure they left the house, only breaking down once they were out of sight. He took a deep breath and banged his head against the door, hating how just seeing them brought back unhealthy memories. Before he could let himself get any more miserable, though, he felt a soft hand touch his arm," It's okay, Frederick," Robin smiled supportively," You have a new family now."

The brunette looked up half heartedly and allowed his lips to curve up," I suppose you're right this time, Miss Doe. Come, we mustn't let them worry over us," He held out his arm to the girl, who gladly took it. It was odd that in the span of a few months, Frederick changed from her biggest skeptic would slowly morph into her only father figure. She gently hugged his arm before following him into the living room, thanking the gods for such a wonderful family that Christmas. Because in the end, it didn't matter who they were truly related to or not. The strings of fate had tied them together and created their big, eclectic family.

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**Lots of fluff in this chapter and little bit of angst on Frederick's part (sorry Freddy). We started off with Cynthia and Gaius bonding! I really wanted them to spend Christmas together! I also realized that they never really got a moment together outside of properly meeting. Next, we got to see how Ruby and Dimitri got together! This was hard to write because I wasn't sure exactly what approach I wanted to take it with. Eventually, I decided on the flirty/teasing approach because I've hinted that Dimitri is quite the ladies man before. Novak also didn't get rejected by his mommy! Finally, Frederick had to face his parents. Now, this was a scene I've wanted to write since chapter 10 when I mentioned that Frederick's relationship with his parents wasn't good at all. I like how it got to tie Robin's relationship with Frederick together in the end, and gave it good closure. Review time!**

**Moonlights Glow:****Thank you! It's funny that Nate just brings an aura of unsettling events along with him. GAAAHH! I want both Kaze and Keaton, but I can't choose! It all depends on if I get Birthright or not. When I first saw the game, I almost married Jakob, but ultimately decided not to. I think that both my brothers (who both chose to play girls for some reason) are marrying him (how funny is that?). Dude, I know how terrible killing everyone is. I don't even want to be prepared for what I might experience in Hoshido. Thank you for commenting!  
**

**Rainbowpanda5000:****Oh my goodness, I did that with my awakening playthrough! Fun Fact; Cobalt was actually inspired by that playthrough! I don't know if I'm the best judge of character for that because I beat it on normal casual mode, but the levels are somewhat difficult and require a lot of strategy. I actually listened to the japanese version of Azura's song before the english version, so I'm more familiar with it, but both are SUPER pretty. Thank you for reviewing!  
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**Alright, so fluff time is over. Get ready for some angst. If you guys are following the story, you know that it's time for the final few battles. ANGST CENTRAL! Leave your predictions for what might happen in the comment section. I'm curious to see what you guys will think will happen. Anyways, I'll see you guys next weekend! Thank you for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	50. Chapter 50 Monstrosity

**Hey guys! Sorry this is a day late. I had strike (taking down a set for a musical) yesterday, so I wasn't able to finish it until this morning. As soon as it was finished, I tried to post it as soon as possible! Anyways, this chapter is where things start to get real (sorry for a lack of better phrasing). I don't have much else to say, so happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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With winter break coming to a close without so much as a peep from the Grimleal, everyone was starting to think that the troubles they had faced the first half of the year were finally coming to a close.

While Lucina wished she could have same same oblivious hopefulness that the parents did, she knew that the worse was still to come. In a week, the Ylissian Slaughter would take place, and they had to be ready for it. This was the reason the children came back; to prevent at least a few deaths by risking their own lives. There was a strong possibility that they wouldn't come out of it alive, and the thought alone sent chills down Lucina's spine.

"Lucina, are you still awake?" The blue haired looked up and found her mother standing in the doorway. She glanced over at Noire, who was tired from trying to teach Owain how to cook, collapsed on her bed and giggled lightly," I figured that you'd want a good night's sleep because school starts back up tomorrow."

The sixteen year old shrugged and scooted over so that Robin could sit next to her," I know, I just can't bring myself to. I have a lot on my mind."

The white haired girl observed her daughter for a few seconds before nudging her playfully," Are you thinking about Inigo?"

"Inigo?" Lucina's face heated up at the very mention of his name," Why on earth would I be thinking about him?"

"Well, you kissed him at the Christmas party-"

"You knew about that?!" Her face turned impossibly more red as she buried it deeper into her pillow," Oh gods..."

Robin smiled," You really like him, don't you?"

"I don't!"

"You do too!" The white haired girl's lips curved into a smirk," He's quite the catch, I wouldn't let him slip through your fingers."

Lucina rolled her eyes," Mother, I already told you; I'm not interested in Inigo!"

"Then why did you kiss him?"

"I...," Her voice trailed off as she took time to ponder whoa her mother was suggesting. She was right; Lucina had the chance to get out of the kiss, yet for some reason, she wanted it. She thought back to the first time she met Inigo, going over every meeting they had in her head. How did she remember it all? Why was it that whenever she was in trouble, Inigo was one of the people she wanted there with her? She swallowed a lump in her throat, realization hitting her like a pillow to the face," Oh gods..."

Robin squealed in excitement and took her daughter's hands in hers," Are you finally admitting it?"

"I...I think I like Inigo."

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As much as she tried to hide it, Robin's nightmares were returning at full force. Most of them included the same vision she had at the beginning of the year with her murdering Chrom. Every once and a while, though, she would see snippets of something else; Campari standing over Lissa's corpse, Gaius using himself to block a lethal blow meant for Sumia, and even one where Ricken's brother ushering his wife away, only to get shot in the back of the head.

The worst part of it all was that it seemed so real, and she couldn't anybody about it. Lucina and Morgan were already worried enough about their own futures, Sumia seemed so happy to finally be in a relationship, Hewitt would get worried, and Chrom's life had just settled down for it to become insane again. As much as the dreams were bothering her, Robin couldn't bring herself to trouble her friends about it.

Needless to say she was tired Monday morning when school started up again. Chrom noticed her fatigue and rose his eyebrow to question her over it, but she waved it off. While he did leave her alone for the rest of politics, he did give her a look that practically screamed we'll talk about this later. So, it was her natural response to avoid him for as long as possible in order to keep his blissfully ignorant of her worst nightmare.

She had actually succeeded in avoiding her problems for half the day until someone impatiently tapped her back at the end of lunch. She nearly flinched when she turned around to find Nate waiting behind her," You have dreams like mine?" While it was a question, it came out as more of a statement.

Robin blinked in surprise, not expecting that to come out of the boy who had just attempted to murder her a few weeks prior," W-What?"

He rolled his eyes in annoyance," Do you or don't you have cryptic dreams?"

"...How do you know about those?"

"Obviously you've lost sleep, and seeing that you're avoiding most of your friends, I took a chance," Nate turned his gaze to the ground," I didn't expect you to actually have them."

Robin frowned when she realized why he was asking her," You have them too, don't you?"

"Yeah," He clenched his fists," How do I stop them?"

She bit her lip," I wish I knew."

For a split second, Nate's face shifted into something more vulnerable. As soon as it arrived, it disappeared, leaving him with a angry glare," Why don't you know? If you're as great as everybody says you are, why can't you help me?!"

Robin wanted to keep a straight face, but she couldn't help but snort at his comment," Me? Great? All I'm good at is being a drum major. I have just as many, if not more, problems as you do," She hesitantly touched his shoulder, trying to soothe the nerves he seemed to be bottling up inside himself," I can't solve all your problems, but maybe if we work together, we can figure this whole thing out."

What happened next surprised her so much that she had to pinch herself: Nate dropped his head on her shoulder and let out an exhausted huff. The sixteen year old wished she knew what was going on in his head, but he seemed to be very good at blocking off most of his feelings. She stood in shock for a few seconds before her maternal instincts kicked in. Robin smiled softly and pulled him closer so that she was hugging him," It'll be okay in the end."

"No it won't," He grumbled moodily.

The white haired girl giggled and smoothed some of his jet black hair," You sure are an optimist, aren't you?"

"Oh ha ha," Even though she couldn't see him, she knew he was rolling his eyes at her. Eventually, he pulled away and straightened himself out, giving her a brief nod," Thanks...I guess."

"It was my pleasure-" Without warning, the deafening sound of an explosion rang through the halls, yanking the two from their sentimental moment. They exchanged startled looks before taking off towards the nearest room; the band room. Frederick, Ricken, Nowi, and Maribelle were already inside," Guys, we just heard an explosion! You need to lock the door now."

Frederick nodded and ushered the two in and locked the door behind them, pinching the bridge of his nose tiredly," Just when we thought things were going to settle down," He turned to the three younger students, suddenly aware that they had almost little to no training," You three need to hide."

"What about Nah?" Nowi crossed her arms defiantly," I can't just abandon my daughter!"

"She should be safe at the middle school," Ricken gulped," Right? They're not going to attack a middle school, are they?"

Maribelle shook her head nervously," I doubt it, darling. Whatever they want is obviously here, seeing that this is their second attack in the past few months," She turned to face Frederick hopelessly," I know this is a lofty request, but my son..."

"All we can do is hope for the best-"

"I'll find him," Nate cut in," He'll be in good hands, Maribelle."

Robin nodded," I'll go too-"

"No, you won't," The dark haired boy gave her a strict glare," We all know what they're after."

The white haired girl's eyes widened to the size of saucers when the reality of the situation sank in; they were there her. She looked nervously from the band students to Nate, desperately trying to ignore the frantic beating of her heart. Should she stay like Nate said, or should she go and fight?

Before she could make that decision, someone started frantically banging on the door," It's me! Chrom! Let me in!"

Robin rushed to the door, throwing all caution to the wind and throwing her arms tightly around her boyfriend. The blue haired boy smiled softly and smoothed her hair comfortingly before turning back to the others," We're bringing everybody down to the basement for their safety. We don't have much time, so we have to leave now."

Maribelle marched forward and crossed her arms defiantly," I'm not going anywhere until my Brady is found!"

"Don't worry, Maribelle, he's down there," Chrom reassured," We better hurry if we'd like to join him."

That was enough for the blonde to take her friends by the hand and drag them out of the band room, closely followed by Frederick. Chrom was about to go as well, but his girlfriend gently reached out and took his hand to stop him. He blinked in confusion at her hesitancy to go," Are you ready, Robin?"

Robin dropped his hand and moved to tug on the sleeve of her sweatshirt," Chrom, first I have a favor to ask..."

He knew where this was going. At this point, it was fairly obvious that this was a Grimleal attack. He was positive that they came for Robin, and after losing Emmeryn, he couldn't bare the thought of losing anybody else," As long as it's not a request to leave you behind."

"It's not...though I did consider it. I can't hurt you if I'm not there in the first place. But...," She sighed," I can't run from Validar forever. And if I'm going to overcome him, my best chance is with you by my side."

Chrom smiled softly and pulled her hand away from her sleeve, squeezing it reassuringly," That's more like it-"

"But I need to ask you a favor...," She took a deep breath, thinking back to the day she first met Validar. One of the dreams she had was a constant reminder of how easily he was able to make her mind go fuzzy. If he was able to do that again...Robin cringed," If Validar somehow does gain control over me...Promise me...Promise me you'll-"

Chrom shook his head wildly, not liking where she was going at all," You can't mean that. You can't ASK that!"

She grabbed both of his hands in here and hushed him," I'll resist him with all that I am. I promise you. But there are other people involved here, too many people to ignore. Our families, our friends, even our children...," Robin tightened her grip, but kept her eyes focused on his," You have a duty to protect them as well."

He scoffed and turned his gaze to the ground, hating the reality of the situation,"...You're right. The words burn my tongue, but you're right," Without warning, Chrom pulled her close to him and wrapped her in the warmest hug he could produce," But you mustn't let Validar seize control! Whatever it takes. Whatever the cost!"

Robin nodded, but she couldn't help but think back to the day Emmeryn sacrificed herself. Would she have to do that too? The selflessness that the woman had displayed was suddenly crystal clear to her, serving as a bitter reminder that Robin could never be half the woman that the former principal was. Why was she so scared? Why couldn't she be brave? She shuddered and huddled closer to her boyfriend," I'll try. You know I will."

Chrom sighed bitter sweetly and pulled away from the embrace," Come on. We need to catch up with the others if-" The blue haired boy froze, his face growing deadly serious before pushing her to the ground," Get down!"

That was the last thing she heard before the second explosion went off.

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When Kjelle heard the second bomb go off, she knew that there'd be no relenting from the enemy. She gave a worried glance towards the terrified students hiding in the basement, knowing that these still weren't all of the kids. Some of them were still stuck out there, and somebody needed to protect them. The aqua haired girl gave a sad smile towards her parents, hoping that this wouldn't be the last time she saw them...No. If she thought like that, it would happen. Kjelle scoffed and tightened her grip on the spare pipe she picked up before heading out of the exit and into the school.

She was immediately met with a cloud of smoke choking her lungs. Kjelle pulled her scarf up from around her neck and used it to cover her nose and mouth. Once she felt like she could breath at least somewhat easier, she took off in search of students.

Just when she thought it was a lost cause, a familiar voice rang out from inside a closet," Ugh, I'm so pathetic! Stupid legs-why won't you listen to me?! And YOU, arms..."

Kjelle sighed in relief and pushed the door open, both glad and slightly annoyed to see Yarne sitting inside," Am I...interrupting something?"

"Oh, it's useless," She rose her eyebrow, causing him to squeak and backtrack," I mean, I really appreciate all your help, but it's useless. I've been training my hardest to build up confidence, but combat still terrifies me. I came out here to try and help, but the pictures of the assassins in my mind kept coming back...And now when the time comes to fight, my legs start to shake. Guess you can't train your guts. I'm just not brave like everyone else..."

Kjelle patted his shoulder comfortingly," I think you might have the wrong idea here. There isn't a person alive who doesn't shake when marching into combat. People are trying to kill you, Yarne. Any sane person would be afraid."

The brunette cocked his head in confusion," What, even you?"

"Of course! We're all fighting two wars: One against the foe. One against our fear. We've got to win both if we want to live. There's nothing pathetic about it. Heck, the opposite, really. Admitting your fears and struggling against them takes guts...You should be proud."

"Really?"

The girl nodded," That's what bravery is, Yarne-the drive to be strong, even when you know you're weak," Kjelle turned her eyes towards the ground in shame,"...I'm sorry for being so harsh on you this whole time. I may have misjudged you."

Yarne shook his head wildly, flabbergasted at the very idea," What? No, you were right."

Kjelle smiled softly, thinking back to her thoughts earlier. If this was the last chance to express herself, she might as well," And as long as we're being forthright, there's one other thing I have to say."

"Oh? Let's hear it."

Kjelle felt a soft blush grow on her cheeks as she tried in interpret her feelings," I think I may have...grown fond of you."

The brunette's jaw dropped as he burst into fits of stuttering," Wh-wh-what?! Me?! How? Why?! And since when?! You haven't been whispering sweet nothings into my ear here."

"Hey, I apologized, didn't I?" She grumbled embarrassedly,"...And I really did think you were pathetic at first. But since then, I've seen how dedicated you are to getting better. It's kinda...dreamy," She narrowed her eyes when she saw the baffled expression on his face,"...What, is that a problem?"

Yarne laughed at her annoyance," N-no, it's just...It's really sweet of you to say that, Kjelle. Thank you," when he saw the anxious look he was giving her, he slapped his forehead," Oh, sorry! I should've started off with my answer. The feeling's mutual! I figured you knew that. The only reason I kept training was because I didn't want you to lose all respect for me. I may not be the hero type, but I at least want to look good around the girl I like."

Kjelle clapped him on the shoulder before helping him up," Then I guess we'd better get back to it after this whole fiasco is done, huh? Come on, let's help people before this building collapses on us."

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When Dimitri walked back into his apartment to find it empty, he felt a pit grow in his stomach. Priam said that he was substituting for the gym teacher today, so he had expected his friend to be gone. Ruby, on the other hand, was watching TV before he left. She would've texted him if she left to go out; she always did.

The brunette felt the dread in his gut grow even more when he walked into the living room and found the news channel blaring breaking news. Dimitri nervously set the bag of groceries down and sat on the couch, only to find a picture of Ylisse High with smoke billowing out of it," Breaking News! Ylisse High is under attack! We suspect the Grimleal cult in behind it. There is no report of casualties yet, but we will stay tuned," Ylisse High?! That's where Ricken and Novak were! Were they safe? Most importantly, where was Ruby?

Oh gods. Ruby went after them. Dimitri jumped up from his spot and grabbed his keys, heading straight towards the school.

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Chrom woke up to find Robin shaking him," Come on, you need to wake up!" He blinked drearily, trying to focus his vision. Unfortunately, with the mixture of smoke in the air and the fact that both of them were covered in soot, the only tool he could use to recognize her was her snow white hair," Please, you need to get up!"

He groaned and slowly sat himself, rubbing his head and trying to ignore the pain in the back of his head," What happened?"

"A nearby explosion went off and nearly killed us!" Robin pulled her boyfriend into a hug," If it hadn't been for your quick thinking, we'd both be dead!"

Before he could reply, Validar's slinky voice boomed through the loudspeakers," Desdemona, come and accept your fate. If you give yourself in now, we will release the students unharmed. If you don't, the most important person in your life will be the first to be slaughtered. We are giving you half an hour to make your decision. After your time is up, we will come get you. You have nowhere else to run, Desdemona. Accept your fate!"

Chrom growled, thinking back to the announcement on the last attack of school this entire situation was entirely too familiar to him," This is a trap."

"Definitely," She replied," But maybe, if we play our cards right, we could be the ones placing them in a trap!"

"We need to tread carefully, Robin," The blue haired boy reminded," They said that they're holding someone who is important to you. What if they get hurt in the process? What if it's one of our children?!"

Robin rolled her eyes," I don't think we have anything to worry about. If it was one of our kids, they would've named them over the loudspeaker," When she noticed his hesitancy, she took his hands in hers," Chrom, this is something we need to do if we want these attacks to stop once and for all. What would Emmeryn do?"

Chrom flinched at the use of his sister's name, desperately hoping that she wasn't implying what he thought she was. Knowing Robin, she'd go face off with Validar, with or without him. If he was to ensure her safety, he had to go with her," You're right. This is it! Our final battle!" She nodded and went to leave, but he caught her hand in his," You're one of us, Robin, and no "destiny" can change that. Now let's kill this dastard and be done with it!"

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"Desdemona, come and accept your fate," Robin drearily blinked awake, finding her Body feeling heavier than usual and her mind fuzzy. What had just happened? Where was she? Robin rubbed her head wearily and pulled herself into a sitting position," If you give yourself in now, we will release the students unharmed. If you don't, the most important person in your life will be the first to be slaughtered. We are giving you half an hour to make your decision. After your time is up, we will come find you," Robin widened her eyes in horror when the reality of the situation finally sank in. Someone important to her? Were they referring to Morgan and Lucina? What about Hewitt? Gods, if they so much as laid a finger on Sumia, Gaius, or Lon'qu, she would end them! She clenched her fists defiantly as her father finished," You have nowhere else to run, Desdemona. Accept your fate!"

"Chrom, we have to-" She froze she realized her boyfriend was nowhere near her," Chrom? Chrom!" Robin tried to stand up, only to find herself handcuffed to a broken desk. Her heartbeat quickened tenfold as she tried to pull herself free. She opened her mouth to scream, but stopped herself before she could give her spot away. The last thing she needed right now was more Grimleal attention. Oh gods, what was going to happen to Chrom? Did they capture him? This was all her fault! If only she hadn't gone with the Exalts the first day she woke up! None of thesis would have happened to them! It would've been her problem to face alone, not theirs! It was her fault that the entire school was in danger! She choked on a sob," Oh gods...Oh g-gods..."

"Robin?!" Her breath caught when she heard someone calling for her," Is that you?!"

She stood up straighter and turned her head towards the area the voice came from," I-I'm in here!"

The white haired girl's shoulders sagged in relief when Gaius burst in," Oh thank gods! I thought they had gotten to you before we could!" The redhead rushed to her side and pulled a lock pick from his pocket, winking cheekily at her when she pointed to them in confusion," What kind of their would I be if I didn't carry around my trusty lock picks?"

She shook away her confusion and desperately grabbed his wrist," Have you seen Chrom?! I was with him before the explosion-"

"Not yet, Bubbles," He finished releasing her and helped her get onto her feet," But I have a pretty good feeling about where he is."

Robin felt her stomach churn at the thought of all the trouble she had caused everybody. It was her fault that their children's future was bad, it was her fault Hewitt and Gaius went to prison, it was her fault the school was under attack, and now it was her fault that Chrom was in danger. She was tired of things being out of her control. Without a second thought, she started to take off towards the door," I'm going to get him-"

Gaius's eyes widened, and he dove forward to yank her back," Woah, Bubbles! We need a plan!"

"The plan is to save Chrom," She replied seriously," I'll be damned if anything happens to him."

The redhead faltered, looking between her and the door," Ugh, you never make things easy, do you?" He hesitantly released her and pulled out a pocket knife," You're going to need to protect yourself," Gaius took her hand in his and placed the weapon inside of it, closing her fist around it before lightly kissing the back of her hand," Stay safe, Bubbles."

She blinked back tears, thanking the gods for giving her Gaius. Without hesitation, she tackled her friend into a tight hug," Thank you."

He rubbed her hair softly," Go kick some ass for me, okay? Bring Blue back to us."

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"Desdemona, come and accept your fate. If you give yourself in now, we will release the students unharmed. If you don't, the most important person in your life will be the first to be slaughtered. We are giving you half an hour to make your decision. After your time is up, we will come get you. You have nowhere else to run, Desdemona. Accept your fate!"

Inigo clenched his fists at the sound of Validar's voice. He had hoped that after the battle with the five assassins, Validar would slink back into the hole he crawled out from. Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be the case. Now both Robin and her family's lives were at stake, and he wasn't just going to sit around and wait for things to happen.

He thought back to what Validar said about the hostage he held. Could it be Lucina? The man knew that she was Robin's daughter, and he mentioned interest in before. Inigo scowled in disgust, wishing that he had just killed the man on the spot.

Gods, what if he did have her? What if she died?! Inigo would never forgive himself. After years of taking care of the future generation during the equivalent of the apocalypse, she deserved happiness. Even if he wasn't the one to give it to her, he had to insure she was satisfied.

"Inigo?"

His ears perked up at the sound of his name, butterflies practically erupting in his stomach. It...it couldn't be...he slowly turned around, only to find Lucina standing on the opposite end of the hallway. He let out a cry of relief before sprinting towards her and lifting her into the air," Oh thank gods, I thought that they had gotten to you!"

She laughed weakly as he lowered her back onto the ground," I'm fine, and so is Morgan. He is hiding out in the basement with the other students," Her smiled faded," Have you seen my parents?"

"I haven't," Inigo shook his head sadly," We need to get to them before the Grimleal does."

"Agreed," She pulled away from his embrace and grabbed his hand," Come on, we have to hurry-Inigo? Are you alright?"

He stared at her anxiously, ignoring her worried look in order to get his own thoughts straight. This was his moment. Heck, this might be the last opportunity he gets to tell her about his true feelings. Yet...he couldn't bring himself to. Not with her parents in danger. Taking advantage of her emotions wasn't going to get him anywhere, even if he wasn't trying to manipulate her in the end," I'm fine," He lied through this teeth.

Lucina furrowed her eyebrows, but chose not to press the matter," Whatever you say..."

* * *

**I'll address the question everybody is problem asking first; if Robin isn't the one with Chrom, who is? I actually came up with the idea while writing the chapter, because I was originally going to have the room they were in closed off with them in it, like the level. This, however, is going to be WAY MORE ANGSTY. Bwahahaha! So, Lucina is finally realizing her feelings for Inigo, but neither are willing to act upon it yet because they think it will badly affect the other. So Robin and Nate, the two polar opposites in this story, actually have some common ground. I like to think that Nate looked up to Robin a lot before the war, but after his mom died, he became really closed off. She is his aunt, after all. Kjelle and Yarne are the first children couple to get together! It's ironic because they were one of the only couples I actually didn't pair up in my playthrough. I just really liked their chemistry and supports, and they play off of each other very well! I almost had Lucina be the one to find Robin, but seeing that she can't pick a lock, I sided with Gaius. Gaius is going to become more important later in the story anyways, so their interaction will mean more. Review time!**

**juddojuice:**** Holy cow, that's a lot of reading (for me, at least. As you can probably see, I'm more of a writer)! I'm so glad that you like the story, and I think that it's cool that you can become so immersed in it! MARCHING BAND BUDDIES! That part was a little more challenging because I have never been to a marching competition. Yay, shipping! Thank you for reviewing!**

**So, if you follow the gameplay of FEA, you know what's coming next. SUPER ANGST! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Unfortunately, this means that the story will focus on the main/main supporting characters. I will try and put in some cameos (example would be Ricken, Nowi, and Maribelle in today's chapter) in the future chapters, but most of it will revolve around Chrom and Robin's stories from this point on. On that note, thank you for reading! I'll see you next weekend!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	51. Chapter 51 Demise

**Hey guys! Sorry this chapter is a day late, I had to finish the last (most angsty) part of the chapter today! To recap, Chrom and Robin were seperated. Chrom is with "Robin", and Robin is by herself. Validar is waiting for Robin to turn herself in. Because of this, Lucina and Inigo are also heading in the same direction to prevent anything bad from happening. Ruby went after Novak, and in return, Dimitri also went in to make sure neither of them gets to hurt. Alrighty! Buckle your seatbelts for some angsty angst!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

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Chrom had a bad feeling about their "secret plan". While he did trust Robin to know what she was doing, it was pretty dangerous for the both of them. There was also the fact that his girlfriend had never been so determined to fight before. The only other time he had seen her so willing to walk into a trap was the last time Validar contacted her.

Yet, she was so torn up after the "visit". Why would she want to run back into their open arms? Chrom clenched his jaw and couldn't help but think that there was something more to what was going on," Hey Robin?"

"Hmm?"

"You said something about a plan," He treaded hesitantly," What exactly do you mean by that?"

Robin tilted her head," I figured that I'd just tell you when we got there. We can't waste any time right now."

The blue haired boy narrowed his eyes," Why can't you tell me on the way?"

She groaned," Look, do you trust me or not? I thought that our relationship meant something, but...," She finally slowed to a stop," I guess I'm not surprised."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't trust me to do anything," She laughed bitterly," You didn't want me to help Maribelle on the first day, you wouldn't allow me to confront my father...do you trust me at all?"

Chrom bit his lip, wishing that he could let go of his suspicions. As unsettling as her sudden determination was, he couldn't help but feel like this was something she had been holding inside of her for a long time. Did she really think that he didn't trust her? He turned his gaze to the ground in shame," I'm sorry."

The white haired girl allowed the corners of her lips to curve into a small smile as she reached forward to hold his hands in hers," Don't worry about it. Right now, we have other things to worry about."

"You're right, as always," He chuckled," Lead the way."

"With pleasure."

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Morgan couldn't find his family anywhere. He knew that Lucina had gone up to find her parents, but that was over twenty minutes ago! What if they were trouble? He couldn't just sit back and wait for them to get hurt! That's what happened when-

Wait. Morgan furrowed his eyebrows, acknowledging the fuzzy feeling flooding his brain. What was happening? Was it...was it a memory? He breath caught as he saw a glimpse of the war torn vision he had seen whenever he mentioned something about his past. The scene had haunted his dreams for almost a month now, stealing his sleep and taunting him with threats to his identity. Yet, after what seemed like an eternity of avoiding it, Morgan knew what he had to do; he had to remember.

The sound of screaming that he had avoided for so long slowly began to trickle back into his brain. A foggy vision of a head of blue hair standing in front of him jerked back suddenly, falling back into his arms. After slowly lowering her to the ground, the image began to become more clear; it was Lucina.

Morgan winced at the memory, but continued to search further. If he was going to stop something bad from happening, he had to soldier on. With a deep breath, he searched his brain for any other clues. The only one he came across was a womanly man laughing at them. Had they seen each other before? Morgan knew his name, but it wasn't quite coming to him...

His eyes widened when it finally hit him; the man who had hurt Lucina and given him amnesia was-

Suddenly, everything went black.

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Levy sat in the basement and hugged her knees, trying to ignore the sound of the students crying around her and the occasional agonized scream that symbolized something she didn't even want to consider. She hated waiting downstairs, but she knew that she wouldn't be much help if she went up. After all, fighting was never her strong suit. She would only be a nuisance. While a few of the future children had gone upstairs to retrieve students and help Chrom and Robin, Owain, Gerome, Emmy, Cynthia, Brady, and Nate stayed downstairs to protect the students from the Grimleal. Emmy and Brady were treating injured students, Cynthia was reassuring people, Nate and Gerome were guarding the door, and Owain had opted to sit next to Levy.

If only her parents had stayed around. She hoped that they were killed in the future, because the only other option was that they left her in a trash bin and left her to save themselves. If Cobalt and Tanith hadn't found her, she wasn't sure what would have happened to her. She loved her godparents for staying around as long as they could, but they were one of the first parents to go. Her father had died protecting her, and her mother left soon after because of her grief. She was only six years old.

Maybe that was why she was so drawn to Owain. He was always positive and upbeat, distracting her from the dark story that was her life. She smiled softly, thinking back to the day they first met. Her parents had just died, and she was left to fend for herself yet again. He had found her hiding in a gardening shed and brought her back with him to the Shepherds. He didn't ask why she was alone or looked so sad, he just understood. Instead, he told her stories about how cool the adults in the Shepherds were and how she'd never be in danger if she stuck with them. He got in a lot of trouble when he returned for leaving without taking an adult with him, but when they saw the state Levy was in, they pushed the punishment away and made sure she was alright.

The purple haired girl bit her lip guiltily, thinking back to the day she made Owain cook for her. Did she have to lie to get him to talk to her? A part of her liked to think she didn't, but she would never know unless she told the truth," Um, say, Owain?"

Owain tilted his head," What's wrong? You sound upset," He nudged her playfully," Speak, O fated companion! Spill your breast unto me!"

Levy's face burned bright red," Oh, wow. I don't think that's how that phrase goes," When he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, she scrambled to continue," Anyway, um, it's about before...When I was testing you?"

She expected him to be aghast at the fact that she was testing him, but he only shrugged," That business? What of it?"

"You knew?!"

"Of course I did," He laughed," Why else would you want me to cook for you? The almighty Owain is proficient at a number of activities, but cooking isn't one of them."

Levy felt her face heat up in mortification. He knew this whole time? Did he know she had a crush on him? Oh gods, he'd hate her if he ever found out! Her heart was practically pounding in her chest, and her brain was yelling at her to tell the truth," Yeah, so, that wasn't really about cooking or gems or anything. I just wanted to see how important I was to you. I'm sorry for being dishonest."

The white haired buy shrugged again, treating her actions like they were the most normal things in the world," All part of the partner-vetting process! Think no more on it."

She rubbed the back of her neck bashfully," But there's still one thing I really want that you haven't given to me. Maybe you could...think about what that might be?"

"What you really want, huh? Hmm...," He brought his hand up to his chin pensively," Wait, is this round three?"

"It's the final round," She blurted, nearly smacking herself for sounding so stupid.

Fortunately, the boy didn't seem to mind," All right, give me a second here. Hmmmmm..."

Levy clenched and unclenched her fists impatiently, watching as his face scrunched up thoughtfully. After what seemed like an hour (it was only about two minutes), she smiled hopefully," Well? Have you figured it out?"

The boy jumped a little and scrambled for an answer," Is it...a pony?!"

Out of all the answers that could have come out of his mouth, that was one she wasn't expecting," Um, n-no. It's not a pony."

Owain frowned," Oh. I thought all girls loved ponies," He perked back up," You're not just saying that because they're expensive, right? Because I'd certainly get you a pony! I'd get you anything you wanted!"

The purple haired girl's heart melted at his sincerity," Really?"

"Of course! I'd do anything for the woman I love!" Owain froze when he realized what had just come out of his mouth, unaware that Levy's grin was growing incredibly wide," I didn't...mean to...say that out loud."

He loved her? He actually loved her?! Levy couldn't even form words! All of the fear and anxiety she was feeling a minute ago faded like the wind, leaving her with a warm, fuzzy feeling engulfing her entire body," Owain!"

His ears turned pink in embarrassment," Well, as long as I've spilled those beans, I might as well dump the rest of 'em out. That whole partner thing was a ruse. I just wanted to spend time with you."

Levy dove forward and grabbed his hands, unable to contain her excitement," Oh, Owain! THAT'S the answer I've been looking for!"

"Wait...it is?"

She nodded happily," All I ever wanted was to know how you felt. To hear you say those words! But all I could ever get from you were home-cooked meals and cool stories."

The eccentric boy's jaw dropped in shock," Does that mean you..."

"Yes, you silly boy, I love you! I've loved you for so long! I've known it since the moment you brought me to the Shepherds!" A small blush dusted across her cheeks," Be my partner, Owain. Not just in battle, but in life."

Owain brought one of her hands up and kissed the back of it," I swear to be at your side, in war and in peace, for as long as I live!"

Levy giggled," I'll hold you to that—because I swear the same!"

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Ruby didn't know how she got herself into this. She had intended to watch the events play out on screen, but when she caught a glimpse of her son in the school, she knew she had to go after him. She'd never forgive herself if anything happened to him.

"Ruby?!"

The woman froze and spun around, only to find Nah staring at her in fear," Nah?! What are you doing here? It's too dangerous!"

The twelve year old shook her head wildly," I'll be fine, it's you I'm worried about! You're pregnant! What are you doing here?"

The blonde woman huffed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear," I'm here to help. I...I think I saw Novak in one of the windows, which means he's not safe!"

"...I understand," Nah hugged herself," I haven't seen my parents either. I'm worried that they're not safe."

The woman smiled supportively and squeezed the girl's shoulder," How about we look together? I'll feel safe if I'm with you."

"Why?" She grumbled," So that you can look after me and make sure cute little Nah doesn't get hurt?"

"I guess that's a reasonable assumption, but I have a feeling that you'll be the one protecting me," Nah looked up hopefully to her aunt, who winked," You are the one that has flamethrowers in her gloves. I'm in good hands of I'm with you, right?"

The auburn haired girl suddenly felt a surge of confidence; She was so used to everybody turning her away and making her watch from the sidelines, so getting reminded that her aunt was super supportive made her swell up with pride," Right! Let's go find our family!"

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When Noire entered the basement, Priam's heart jumped into his throat. He watched from a distance as Frederick ran to his daughter, half yelling at her and half praising her for being so brave. The girl seemed to say something that upset him, due to the fact that she had to frantically reassure him almost immediately afterwards. It took her a few minutes to calm him down, which only meant one thing; she was planning on going back up.

Priam clenched his jaw and pushed his way through the other students before approaching her. Frederick looked in between the two before settling on him, silently pleading him to convince her otherwise. The blue haired man only responded with a bewildered stare, unsure of what to do himself.

Noire eyed him in horror," P-Priam? What are y-you doing here?"

Her father looked inbetween the two before taking his leave and allowing them to speak in private. Priam, while thankful for the space to speak, felt like he had just lost his main supporter," You're not going up there, are you?"

"I-I have to-"

"No, you really don't!"

Noire's horrified look quickly morphed into a glare," Both Lucina and Morgan are up there alone! There's a small chance that one of the other future Shepherds have found them, but I don't want to wait and watch what happens! If you're worried about my safety, then you should know that-" She paused when she noticed the borderline enamored gleam in his eyes as she yelled at him. Immediately, she lost her intimidating demeanor and blushed," W-Why are you l-looking at m-me like that?"

"Look, I know that you're a badass. Heck, I've seen it myself! You took out three criminals and an old bully all by yourself," He fell forward and pulled her into a tight hug, hiding his face in her hair," I also know that the moment you collapsed was the scariest moment of my life. What if you get hurt again? W-What if you die this time?"

The brunette softened," Priam...when the future children decided to travel to the past, we all agreed that our lives were not as important as our parents. We're going to protect those we love or die trying-"

Without warning, he pulled away to look at her dead in the eyes," You can't mean that! You are no less important than anybody else here!"

"Yes I am! There's another, younger...better version of me that I'm fighting to protect. If I'm gone, I'll be replaceable. I know it sounds bad, but when I see the way my parents dote on the younger version of me...," She sniffled," What's the point of living if everybody I love prefers the real Noire-mmph?"

Priam effectively cut her off by cupping her cheeks and slamming his lips on hers. All of the passion that he had been cooping up for weeks poured out into the gesture, throwing the girl completely off guard. Suddenly, everything clicked in Noire's head, and before she knew it, she was kissing him back. Her hands gripped his shirt tightly, seeing that it was the only thing keeping her from collapsing onto the ground.

When the pair finally seemed to run out of breath, Priam pulled away just far enough for him to keep their close proximity," I prefer you. Gods, I prefer you. Orie's great and all, but I only like her because of her relation to you. You're the Noire I love. After all, it'd be pretty weird if I fell in love with a baby-"

"D-Did you say-"

"Love?" He smirked," Yes, yes I did. I know this isn't the ideal time or place to say so, but I think that you are the hottest, most badass girl I've ever laid eyes on."

Noire stood flabbergasted," W-What...how...W-What about my s-stutter?"

He lightly rubbed his nose against hers," I think it's adorable."

"Really?" He saw her face light up, only for her to deflate and turn away from him," So t-that means you p-probably hate my t-temper. I t-try to be as c-calm as p-possible around y-you, but-"

"Actually," Priam gently took her chin in his hands and tipped it back to face him," I think it's sexy. You're dangerous; I like that."

The brunette's face turned an impossible shade of scarlet," I-I...Uh..."

He gently stroked her cheeks with his thumbs before pressing a delicate kiss on her nose," I know that I may be coming on a little strong, but I also know that I can't stop you from going back up there," His eyes fell to the ground," If this is the last time we are together, then-"

"It won't be."

Priam's eyes flickered up hopefully," I need more than that. I need you to promise me that you'll be safe."

Noire smiled softly, and much to his delight, placed a small peck on his lips," Now that I have someone waiting for me, I need to come back, don't I? I promise to come back for you."

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_"Morgan."_

_The blue haired boy slowly opened his eyes, only to find himself surrounded by what seemed like the sky during sunset. The soft pinks and oranges surrounded him, engulfing him with a warm feeling. He yawned lightly before sitting up and taking in his surroundings. He seemed to floating on nothing, and the only thing to see was the beautiful sky surrounding him._

_"Morgan, turn around," The fourteen year old furrowed his brow in confusion and turned himself around. What he found was a boy, someone about twelve years old with matching blue hair and brown eyes to him," This won't make any sense, but I'm you."_

_Morgan blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes," Am I dreaming?"_

_The boy didn't respond, instead answering him with a demand," You need to tell Lucina that I'm okay. Tell her that I want you to be her brother."_

_Morgan felt a pit grow in his stomach when the boy brought up the thing that scared him the most; his origins," So that means I'm...I'm not her real brother."_

_"Maybe not by blood, but believe me when I say that you two are going to be close for as long as you live," The boy smiled," I wish that I could be there too, but we both know how that'd turn out..."_

_"...Who are you?"_

"Morgan!"

_Morgan's ears perked up when he heard the familiar voice he had been longing for," Luci?"_

"He's waking up! Morgan, can you here me? Wake up!"

Suddenly, he found himself surrounded by the empty halls of the school again. His head was resting on Lucina's lap, and his face was slightly moist. His eyes flickered over to Inigo, who was sitting on his left side and surveying him in panic," Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine," Morgan slowly brought his gaze up to his sister, only to find her cheeks soaked with tears," Luci?"

She exhaled in relief and pulled him into a tight hug, burying her face in his sweatshirt," Don't scare me like that ever again! Why were you out here all alone? You could have been killed!"

Morgan gently rubbed the bump on the back of his head and frowned, knowing that whoever attacked him must have let him live for some reason. While it didn't make much sense at the moment, he decided to dwell on it later," I'm sorry. I just woke up from the weirdest dream...," Lucina pulled away and exchanged a confused look with Inigo, who merely shrugged in response," There was a boy...he looked kind of like me, but younger."

His sister's breath caught," D-Did he say anything?"

"Luci...," Inigo's tone seemed cautious, almost as if he didn't want her to get hurt.

Morgan carefully sat up," No, it's alright. All he said was that he was okay," Lucina's hand flew up to her mouth in shock," Do...Do you know who I'm talking about?"

The blue haired girl nodded tearfully," I think I have a good idea."

Inigo sighed and glanced up at the clock," Morgan, we're going to need you to go back to the basement where it's safe. You can't go into battle with a bump to the head like that."

"He can't go back alone...," Lucina swallowed a lump in her throat," Inigo, can...can you take him back for me?"

"And leave you behind?! I can't-"

"But you need to," She took one of his hands and mustered a smile," I'll be fine. If I'm overwhelmed, I'll fall back."

The brunette shook his head," What if they hold you hostage? What if they hurt you?"

"What if they hurt Morgan on his way back?" Lucina shook her head," His safety is more important than mine. Please, do it for me."

Lucina had never felt as ashamed in her life as she did when she caught her best friend's desperate stare. When it became evident that she wasn't going to give in, he deflated," Please tell me you'll at least be careful," When she nodded, he looped his arm around Morgan's shoulders and lifted him up," As soon as he's safe, I'm coming back for you-"

"Inigo, you need to go before they find us," He spared her one last, longing look before taking off with her brother to bring him to a healer.

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Robin had never run so fast in her life. She ignored the crackle of the Flames surrounding her as they slowly began to eat away at the school and kept her gaze focused on the task at hand: saving Chrom. After all the times he had saved her, it was her time to repay the favor.

She stopped dead when she heard her father's voice coming from the cafeteria and inched closer to the door, eavesdropping before making her entrance," This is it! Our final battle! You're one of us, Robin, and no "destiny" can change that. Now let's beat this dastard and be done with it!"

A chill ran down her spine at not only the voice that came from the room, but the words he was saying. Chrom said that...he always said that in her dream. She covered her mouth to hide the ugly sob that had just sprung from her lips when she heard him reassure," Don't worry; I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

"Gya ha ha! Fools!" Robin slowly peeked her head around the corner, only to find Validar, Chrom, and someone who looked almost exactly like her. Who was the imposter? Robin clenched her fists," Try all you want! You cannot unwrite what is already written!"

Without warning, the Robin imposter pulled out a shotgun and fired a bullet into the man's chest. Validar's eyes widened in a mix of shock and horror as he slowly looked down to observe his wound. While it was normal for Chrom to turn around with an elated smile in her dream, he looked just as terrified as the man she had just murdered and backed away," Robin..."

She had to do something! There was a deranged killer in there with her boyfriend, the person who had given up so much for her! She needed to help him before it was too late! But how? She didn't have a gun! Why couldn't she think far enough ahead to predict that this would eventually happen? Robin bit her lip," This isn't over," The three turned their attention back to her father, who was using the last of his strength to pull himself off of the floor. Suddenly, he pulled out a hand gun and pointed at them," Damn you both!"

Before she could process what she was doing, Robin shot to her feet and shoved Chrom out of the way, taking the hit herself. Unlike the dream, she wasn't penetrated with a dart; this was a real bullet. She hissed and reached for her thigh, only to find it spurting out her blood. She stumbled slightly, half because she was unable to support her own weight and half because the sight of the gore made her feel woozy.

Before she could fall onto the ground, she felt a pair of strong arms wrap around her and carefully lower her onto the ground," Robin! Robin, what were you thinking?!" Chrom scolded, completely oblivious to everything else going on in the room at that moment. All that mattered to him was that he had just spent half an hour with a stranger, watched them murder someone, and stand by helplessly as his girlfriend took a hit for him.

"I'm fine," She lied through her teeth," It's just a leg wound, that's all-"

"You're still injured!" Chrom ran his hand through his hair before finally regaining his composure," Are you all right?" She took a deep breath and nodded, allowing him to help her sit up. Although she couldn't properly express herself, she was relieved that the reality was starting to divert from her dream. She didn't have a gun, she wasn't hallucinating, and Validar seemed to be dead. The boy glanced back at the Validar and grimaced," That's the end of him. Thanks to you we carried the day-"

The sound of a gunshot interrupted him, the unpleasant metallic smell of blood accompanying the sound. Robin quickly pulled away from the boy and screamed in horror when her eyes fell on the bullet hole in his chest. Once she was off of him, Chrom fell backwards, clutching his wound with a pained expression on his face," This is not your—your fault...,"

"Chrom, no...no, no, no, no! Chrom please!" Robin sobbed desperately, ignoring the pain in her leg to crawl by his side," Stay with me, please! I need you!"

He cringed," They're after...you...you need...to leave," The blue haired boy his gaze to her, showing her the same serious expression that she always saw and feared in her nightmares," Promise me...you'll escape from this place...," He choked on his own blood, watching as she furiously shook her head no. He grimaced and gasped up as much air as he could to utter his last words," Please...go..."

"N-no...," Robin spun around in horror when she saw her daughter standing in the doorway," Father! No!"

The white haired girl tried to wave her daughter away," No! Lucina, you need to escape! Run! RUN!"

Before the sixteen year old could take her advice, the doppelgänger shot the girl's shoulder, sending her backwards and onto the ground. Robin screamed and tried to run to her aid, but tripped over herself without the support of her leg. The older woman chuckled and sauntered over to her, stopping down to her level so that she'd be able to tip her chin up towards her," Do you see now, Robin? Human bonds are leaves in the wind. They offer you nothing."

"Please...I need to help them..."

The woman rolled her eyes in an unimpressed fashion and let her head drop back onto the concrete," Pathetic."

"Who are you?" Robin growled," Tell me who you are!"

"I told Chrom, but I guess you have the right to know as well. I'm Robin-"

"Liar!"

The woman gave her a pitied look," You really are an idiot, aren't you? I'm the Robin that murdered you and became the fell dragon, Grima. When this "Marth" of yours decided to come back in time...I came with her."

Robin felt dread start to pile up in her stomach," Another version of me? But how...?"

The criminal sighed," I can be so daft sometimes...It's really quite simple. I am you. Our only difference is the decisions we've made...Those vivid dreams you have-those are my memories. We share those memories because we share the same heart...," She glanced towards the door, acting as if she was waiting for someone to enter it at any time," Your recollection begins the day I entered this world. I intended for us to unite then, the first moment I found you. You didn't understand who I was, but as soon as you saw my mark, you tried to run. Obviously I caught you, but you seemed to know what I was after; your head. To keep me away, you took a brick and knocked yourself out, wiping your memories clean in the process. I couldn't take you then, there was too much damage taken. I had to wait for the perfect time."

Robin narrowed her eyebrows," So it's your fault that I'm an amnesiac..."

"You brought it upon yourself," She snapped back," I knew if Lucina managed to rewrite history, Grima would never be resurrected. And I, in turn, would cease to exist. So I had to step in, now and again, to keep my future secured. Like when Validar was killed in his attempt to assassinate Emmeryn, I had to bail him out of jail," The woman leered down at her," But that is the past, now. We have our future past to think of. All that remains is for you to become Grima, as I did. Then you and I will become as one, and we can reclaim my power."

The girl attempted to scoot away, but her wound was too serious for her to get far," What do you want with me? My blood? I'm already bleeding out half of it-"

"Of course not, darling," A wicked smile crossed her face," I'm after your body."

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Dimitri couldn't find either Ruby or Novak anywhere. It was bad enough that he was terrified , but he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being followed. Every time he turned a corner, he saw a shadow in the corner of his eye. He tried to convince himself that it was just his imagination, but it all seemed to real to be imaginary.

Maybe, if he was fast enough, he'd be able to escape it. Dimitri took a deep breath and began walking quicker, meandering around the maze of lockers and debris surrounding him. Just when it seemed that he had made his escape, he ran straight into another person," Oh crap, I'm-" His voice dropped when he found himself face to face with the same man that has killed Emmeryn in the fall," Sorry..."

Campari observed the young man before stating," You're not a student."

"I-I'm not..."

Much to his dismay, this caused a huge smirk to cross his face," The boss said that I couldn't kill any of the kids because we need them for later...," He brought a gun up and pointed it inbetween Dimitri's eyes," You're not a kid."

The brunette ducked just in time to miss the bullet and scrambled to get back onto his feet, turning the corner as fast as he could. Before he could fully escape, he tripped over his own feet and fell on his face. Dimitri swore and spun onto his back to try and push himself back up, but was met with Campari pointing a gun at him," Are you ready to suffer?"

Dimitri closed his eyes, waiting for death to welcome him in its open arms. The gunshot that filled the room sounded more like thunder, and the thump that followed it felt more like an earthquake. Was...was he still alive? Dimitri slowly opened his eyes, only to find Campari shaking above him," Shit...I wasn't supposed to...the boss better not find out," With that, he took of in the opposite direction, leaving him alone.

The young man furrowed his eyebrows; what had shaken the murderer so much? He was fully prepared to kill him just moments before, so why did he leave in such a hurry? Dimitri got his answer when the smell of blood filled his nostrils. The brunette's eyes widened in horror as he slowly brought his gaze down to see a wounded body at his feet.

Novak.

Dimitri let out a startled cry and scrambled to put his son's head on his lap, stroking the young boy's hair as he started choking on his own blood," D-Dad..."

"Shh, it'll be okay," He tried to apply pressure to the wound, but it seemed to deep to save. Dimitri held back a sob and continued to stroke his hair," It'll be okay, I promise."

"Y-You're...not hurt...," Novak coughed," R-Right?"

His father nodded tearfully," I'm fine-"

"R-Right?"

"I'm not hurt," The twenty three year old tried to keep his tears from showing," Shh...I'm so sorry, Novak. Please, stay with me-"

The boy let out a small laugh, only to cough immediately after," It's okay, dad...I knew...this would happen...Your child...needs his...dad..."

"And I need you!" Dimitri cupped his son's cheek," Novak, please, just hold on! I never acted like the dad you deserved! I need time to be your dad!"

The corner of Novak's lips pulled up into a soft smile," You...were always...my...dad...I love...,"

The end of Novak's life was quiet, despite the noise and violence surrounding them. The once lively, hopeful eyes of the boy faded into a dull shade of gray, and his pink cheeks paled into a ghostly white. The only thing that didn't change was his ever present smile, even if it was barely there.

Dimitri sat in shock, shaking his son," Come on...Open your eyes. Novak? Come on, Novak, please...," When it became evident that all that was left of his son was his body, the twenty three year old couldn't hold back his tears anymore," Novak!"

* * *

**I almost cried writing the end of this chapter. Seriously, Novak was one of my favorite characters, and I had to FREAKING KILL HIM! That's right; Novak is not coming back. Kill me. Freaking kill me. He died to protect Dimitri so that his younger self would grow up with a father. GAAAAAHHHH! GAAAAAHHH! SO MANY FEELS! Anyways, we had some lighter moments in the chapter as well. Levy and Owain got together alongside Priam and Noire. I actually really liked the cute little ways they got together as well. Morgan got knocked out and dreamed about a boy that looked like him (wanna guess who it was?). Lucina forced Inigo to go back with Morgan to make sure he was safe. This meant that she went face them alone, which got her in a looooottttt of trouble. That leads us to the main part of this chapter: Validar is dead, Chrom got shot in the chest, Lucina got shot in the shoulder, Robin got shot in the leg, and Grima Robin has everything in the palm in her hand. I won't go in that as much. I don't think I can do it much justice by talking about it. I'll just let you watch what happens, because the story is getting progressively darker as it goes on. Review time!  
**

**potatoman098:** **Right...Grima is going to "miss"...Chrom won't get hurt...hehehe...You were right, it is the evil time traveler of death. Aversa's not out to get anyone at the moment. This chapter was super angsty, and the next will be just as (if not more) angsty. Thanks for reviewing!**

**juddojuice:**** Angst central! I hope that you like (or don't like, seeing that I've seriously injured and killed some of the main characters)! Thank you for reviewing!**

**I'm sorry that this is a day late, but I think that it's worth it because I tore your hearts apart. The next chapter will follow where we left off with Robin/Chrom/Lucina/Sort of Dimitri. I haven't really decided yet. Knowing me, it probably will, because it takes a lot of story to fill ten pages of a chapter. Anywho, I'll see you guys next week! Thanks for reading!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


	52. Chapter 52 Awakening

**Hey guys! I'm actually posting on the day I'm supposed to for once! How cool is that? Not that I can say this chapter is a happy one...Sorry ahead of time. Actually, this will probably be one of the darkest chapters in this story. That means that once you get through it, things shouldn't be...as bad...I guess. There is violence in this chapter as well as some disturbing imagery, so continue to read at your own risk. Happy reading!**

**I do not own Fire Emblem**

* * *

Inigo knew that he didn't have much time when he heard the gunshots go up above him. As soon as he had safely deposited Morgan in the basement under the protection of the Shepherds, he tore up the stairs to find Lucina. While he wanted to believe that the girl wouldn't go towards danger, he knew that she'd be in the same area as the gunshots.

When the brunette finally arrived, all that was left of the scene were three bodies. He unconsciously stiffened and cautiously made his way inside, swallowing the sickening scent of blood that cloaked the room. The body drenched in the most blood surprised Inigo the most; Validar seemed to have bled to death after getting shot in the chest.

A soft, gurgling noise grabbed Inigo's attention, leading him to look at the next body. His heart dropped in his stomach when he realized it was Chrom," Oh gods," The brunette got onto his knees and pressed his ear against the former drum major's chest and nearly cried in relief when he heard a faint heartbeat," You are one resilient man," He laughed lightly," All we've got to do is get you to a hospital. Lucina will be..."

His voice trailed off when he remembered the reason he had come to the cafeteria in the first place; Lucina. The future child stiffened and slowly turned his attention to the third body, praying that it wasn't who he thought it was. It didn't seem to be as bloody as the other two, but when he caught the familiar head of blue hair, his smile dropped," Lucina?" Inigo launched himself by her side and scooped her body in his arms, looking for any sign of a bullet wound. The only one he located seemed to be in her shoulder, which wouldn't kill her unless it got infected.

Gods! Why had he left her alone? He could have protected her! It was his fault that she was hurt, and if he didn't do something about it soon, the consequences could be fatal," Don't worry, Luci, I'll keep you safe," He coaxed desperately," I'll get you out of here in one piece, I promise-"

He sucked in his breath and turned back to look inbetween Lucina and Chrom. Both were still alive, but neither had long. He couldn't bring both! His heart screamed at him to get Lucina and leave Chrom behind, but she'd never forgive him if her father died in her place. He also couldn't leave Lucina behind again, not after what happened last time. Inigo didn't have any time to choose! The brunette frantically looked from one victim to the other," This can't be happening. We were supposed to change this! Everything we've done is...worthless."

"The hell it was!"

"Huh?" Inigo's ears perked up. Wasn't he alone? Could someone be there to help him? A huge grin broke into his face," I know that voice..."

His prayers were answered when Basilio, out of the hospital bed and on his two feet, sauntered into the room with a gaggle of policemen behind him," Don't you put any stock in this destiny hogwash! Let the dead whine about their fate...," His eyes fell on Validar and shook his head pitying the man," As long as I draw breath, I choose to keep fighting! That's what life is all about!"

"Grandpa Basilio! I-I thought...," Inigo became solemn," We all thought you were-"

Basilio pointed at some of the people in his force and motioned for them to bring Chrom to safety while he made his way to Inigo," Worm food in that hospital?" He shrugged," It almost went that way. But I scraped by, thanks to you and your friend."

It almost seemed to good to be true," I don't understand."

The man chuckled at the teenager's baffled expression," Once I took that hit from Walhart, I knew I wasn't going to make it on my own. Normally pride would've had me dead before I'd even thought twice about it. But your warning gave me the courage to be a coward, hah ha! I probably would be dead if it wasn't for you," He ruffled the boy's hair affectionately," You saved my life, Inigo. Had you not come for me...I'd have died on the spot. But now is not the time to think about the past. We need to get these kids to the ambulance," He tilted his head towards Lucina," Can you handle bringing her there?"

"Honestly, I wouldn't feel safe if anybody aside from myself did it," Inigo scooped the unconscious girl up into his arms," Lead the way, Gramps."

"Don't call me that, it makes me feel old."

"Whatever you say, Old Man-"

"I-Inigo...?" The two turned their attention down to Lucina, who was slowly blinking awake. Inigo gently placed her onto her feet but kept his arms firmly locked around her waist. She hissed in pain when she tried to move her arm, but quickly brushed it off," Father..."

The brunette hushed her," It's okay. He's safe. We're bringing you both to the hospital right now-"

"...M-Mother too?"

The pair shared panicked looks," You mean Robin?" Basilio cursed, looking from her dead father to the injured teenagers. The only sign that someone else had been there was a puddle of blood in the center of the room," She was with you?"

Lucina's eyes shot open as she tried to wriggle her way out of the boy's grasp, ignoring her pain and desperately trying to locate her mother," Where's mother? Mother?!" She flipped back to the police chief," We need to find her! She's in trouble! I've got to save her! Let me go! Inigo, let me go!"

The brunette grimaced, but didn't loosen his hold on the girl," Lucina, you're in critical condition! You can't go after her-"

"Let me go!"

"Lucina, no!" The blue haired girl struggled to free herself, but found that without the support of her arm, Inigo easily overpowered her.

Enough was enough. Inigo took the upper hand by pushing her away slightly, only keeping one of his hands firmly wrapped around her unharmed arm," Stop fighting me! There's nothing we can do right now! While I don't know where your mother is, I know that she wouldn't want you risking your life to save her! Stop risking your life Lucina! Ever since you lost Morgan, you've closed yourself off and convinced yourself that the only purpose in your life was to die protecting those you love! You need to stop! Don't you realize that we care about you? What do you think we'd do if you died?!"

Lucina stared at him in shock, unable to form words," I..."

"Lucina," Inigo's face became scarily serious," I don't know what I'd do if-"

He was cut off by a bloodcurdling scream.

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"Madame, are you sure this procedure will work?"

"It worked with me," A sickeningly familiar voice answered," It will definitely work with her."

Robin groggily opened her eyes, only to find herself in a strange, white room. An array of doctors surrounded her, fiddling with supplies surrounding the table she found herself on. Grima stood near the door with a surgeon, giving them an in depth description of how the procedure would work. Robin furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and tried to push herself, only to find that she was strapped to a metal table. A surge of terror rushed through her as she quietly tried to escape, only to gain the attention of the doctors in the room," She's awake."

The surgeon hurried to her side and reached over her to turn on a blinding, white light," It seems that she is. Should we knock her out before the surgery or-"

Grima smirked, causing chills to run down Robin's spine," Leave her awake and save the supplies. She'll pass out eventually when the pain becomes too much to bear."

"What pain?" Now that she had made her presence made, there was no need to hide her attempts at escape. The white haired girl desperately pulled at the restraints while spouting out frantic questions," What are you going to do to me? Where's Chrom? What's going on? Is Lucina safe? Is Chrom safe? Please, I need to know! I need to know they're safe! I-"

She was cut off when Grima roughly grabbed her chin, forcing the sixteen year old to look her dead in the eyes," I wouldn't worry about your precious little boyfriend. He should be long gone with an injury like that left untreated."

No...Chrom was...it couldn't be. It wasn't possible! He was just eighteen! He had so much life left to live! A life Robin wanted to be a part of...she knew that it was ridiculous to think, but maybe...she was hoping that maybe they'd get married one day. She knew that they were still young and that she hardly knew herself, but what she did know was that she loved Chrom.

But now he was gone. He was dead, and it was all her fault! Dammit! Why did she have to go with him that first day she woke up? Why couldn't the knock to her head kill her! Everyone would be much safer if that was how it went! Robin choked out a sob, but Grima forced her mouth shut before she could make another sound," Don't worry, darling. With the way this...er, procedure...is going to go," A wicked smile crossed her lips," You'll be joining him soon."

Robin shook her head away, trying to hold onto the little amount of dignity she had left," W-What procedure?"

Grima didn't answer, instead turning to the head surgeon," Come and get me once it is done. I'd like to see how it turns out."

The doctors waited until the woman had left to turn back to Robin," Best not keep her waiting," The terrified girl watched as the doctors put on surgical masks and gloves, prepping by surrounding her at the table," Get the brain."

Brain? Robin shakily craned her neck up as high as the restraints would allow, only to find herself looking at a brain submerged in some sort of liquid sitting on the table next to her," W-What?" Suddenly, everything clicked into place: The reason Validar called her the vessel, the reason Grima left after doing too much damage to her head, the explanation for why Grima and her shared a scarily similar appearance. They were going to put Grima's head in her body."

Her survival instincts kicked in at full force as she desperately tried to free herself," No! NO! Let me go! Please, let me go! LET ME GO!"

One of the doctors pinned her onto the table and worriedly turned to the surgeon," She knows what's going on. We need to gas her in order for the procedure to-"

Robin's eyes widened in horror when the surgeon turned around holding a small saw in his hands," We can't. You heard what Grima said," He turned back to face her with a grim amount of seriousness," Hold still of willingly face the pain you'll bring upon yourself."

Was this the end? It couldn't be! She hadn't lived long enough to make new memories! She needed to spend time with Lucina and Morgan so that she could give them the love and attention she deserved! She needed to see her friends live happily ever after! Chrom...Chrom would want her to keep fighting. Even if it meant forfeiting her own happiness at the dispense of others. As soon as the saw switched on, Robin screamed bloody murder. Tears openly flowed down her cheeks as sobs forced their way out alongside her agonized shrieks.

Everything next seemed to happen in a blur; The door was smashed open, accompanied by frenzied gunshots shooting down the doctors surrounding her. The surgeon dropped the dreaded saw onto the ground and frantically pleaded for his life, only to get shot in the head. Robin faintly heard voices calmly speak to each other before becoming more urgent. She felt someone release the restraints pinning her to the table, but it was only when Hewitt's face came into view that she allowed some form of relief to sink into her," Robin?! Robin, are you okay?! Robin, speak to me!"

The only response he got was strangled sobs as she slowly curled into a ball. Hewitt desperately turned to Lon'qu, who was still taking in the situation surrounding him. There was no doubt that the brunette was wrestling with his morals, mentally trying to convince himself that the deaths were justified. It wasn't likely that Hewitt was going to get any emotional help from the cop anytime soon, which left his sister's troubles to fall on him. He sighed and scooped the sixteen year old up in his arms, hating how terrified she was. If only he had gotten to her sooner. None of this would have happened-

"C-Chrom," Hewitt pulled himself away from his thoughts and turned to his baby sister, who kept her eyes firmly squeezed shut and her head tucked in his shoulder," I-Is h-he-"

"He's alive," Lon'qu managed to pull himself out of his own stupor to answer her question," He's in critical condition, but he will survive."

Robin managed a tiny nod and burrowed herself closer to her older brother, her sobs reduced to scared whimpers. The black haired boy sighed in relief and gently kissed his sister's forehead before turning back to Lon'qu," We need to get out of here."

The boy pulled his gaze away from the corpses littered on the floor," Let's go," He waited for Hewitt to take the lead and turned to leave the room, only pausing to turn back and shoot the brain inside of the jar," Never again," He muttered darkly before finally following his friends out.

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Dimitri didn't know what to do. The logical voice in his head said that he should hide and stay safe like Novak wanted, but...he couldn't move. The son he had been pushing away was dead, leaving him to regret everything he had done. Why couldn't he have been a better dad? Why did Novak have to die in his place?!

"Dimitri?" His body grew cold when he heard his wife's voice cry out his name," Oh thank gods, are you...," Her voice trailed off when her eyes fell on the body her husband was hugging," N-Novak?"

Nah immediately fell onto her knees and took her cousin's face in her hands," Novak? Come on...wake up...," She shook him slightly," This isn't f-funny. Y-You said that w-we wouldn't separate again...come on...," She nudged him hopelessly," You promised."

Dimitri had to look away when his niece started bawling. His gaze fastened itself on the ground, to cowardly to make eye contact with either girl. Nah's heart wrenching sobs echoed throughout the hallway, tugging on his heartstrings with every gasp. This was all his fault. If only he had been faster. Maybe they'd both be alive.

"How did this happen?"

The twenty three year old pulled his gaze from the ground to focus on his wife, who had a steady stream of tears cascading down her face. Unlike Nah, however, Ruby looked guilt-ridden. When he couldn't find the words to respond, she sternly repeated herself," How. Did. This. Happen?"

Dimitri squeezed his eyes shut," I...A Grimleal member found me and was going to shoot me, but Novak...," Without warning, an abundance of tears started to leak down his cheeks," I'm so sorry! It should've been me! I should've died in his place-"

"N-No," Nah shook her head, gently placing her cousin's head back down before taking her uncle's hands in hers," W-We were all prepared to g-give our lives for p-parents. H-He wouldn't sacrifice himself for nothing," She managed to blurt out the rest of her sentence before diving forward to bury her face in her uncle's chest.

Dimitri froze at the sudden contact before cautiously reaching forward to wrap his arms around the twelve year old," I...I should have done something..."

"Uncle Dimitri..."

"She's right...," Ruby settled herself next to her husband, latching onto his arm like her life depended on it," As much as we wish we could, there was nothing we could do...I'm glad you're safe."

"What do you mean she escaped?!"

The married couple exchanged worried looks, but when they saw Nah stiffen, they knew that they were in trouble," When you sent me to check on the procedure, the room was empty and the surgeons were dead," Campari responded bitterly," I should hunt-"

"What about my brain?" The three slowly turned around, only to find what looked to be like an older, livid version of Robin," What happened to-" She paused and turned to face the trio," Someone's spying on us."

Campari exhaled in relief and turned back to his mistress," Don't worry. I'll take care of them."

The woman nodded curtly before disappearing, leaving the man who killed Novak to face the, once again. Dimitri immediately scooted in front of the two girls, unwilling to allow anyone else that he loved to die that day. Much to his surprise, however, Nah stood up and moved to meet the criminal halfway," You...you murderer!"

Campari lazily glanced down at Novak's corpse," You mean him? He didn't even put up a fight. He was pathetic-"

"Don't talk about him that way!" The couple stared at the twelve year old in shock, watching her body shake angrily. The glare that she had fastened on the man was practically burning a hole into his chest, and her grip on a switch fastened to her backpack was poised. Despite her age, everything about Nah screamed of danger.

Unfortunately for the murderer, Campari didn't take her seriously and aimed his weapon at her," In fact, I bet you'll go down just as easily as-"

Without warning, Nah held up her fist and flicked the button on, causing a burst of flames to erupt from gloves. The fire immediately latched onto Campari's clothes, engulfing him in the heat. The gangster screamed in agony and dropped his weapon, anxiously dropping onto the ground to try and put out the flames licking away at his body. Nah growled at this and continued to spurt fire onto him, not giving him the chance to put out the flames," This is for Emmeryn. This is for Lissa, and Morgan, and mother, and father," Seeing that she had put the man through enough misery, she picked up his discarded weapon and aimed it at his head," But most of all, this is for Novak!"

She shot Campari through his forehead, immediately killing him. For a minute, nobody moved. Dimitri and Ruby watched the fire eat away at the man's corpse, flicking their eyes from him to Nah. How could a twelve year old do such a thing?! As much as Dimitri wanted to berate her for torturing a man before killing him, he felt a sick sense of satisfaction come out of the man's death. Novak was avenged.

Ruby hesitantly got to her feet and cautiously approached her niece. When it became evident that the girl wasn't going to lash out, her aunt wrapped the girl in a tight hug," It'll be okay."

"I j-just killed-"

"Shh, I know...He would've killed us...," Ruby motioned for Dimitri to come by her side," Come on, we need to get to safety before anybody else gets hurt."

Nah shook her head," W-What about Novak's b-body?" She choked out a sob on the last word, still unwilling to fully admit that her beloved cousin was dead.

Dimitri rubbed her head comfortingly, placing his niece's needs before his own," We can get it once everything has calmed down again. But for now, we need to find the others."

The middle schooler nodded her head tearfully and took one hand from both her uncle and aunt, latching onto them for dear life. She badly needed support at the moment, and now that Novak was...the auburn haired girl let out a strangled sob.

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Lon'qu had scouted ahead to make sure that the path back to the basement was safe for Robin and Hewitt. The only threat he seemed to come across was a small fire coming from a nearby classroom, but aside from that, it seemed that most of the Grimleal had finally evacuated.

Just as he was about to enter the basement, Olivia popped out of it and ran straight into him," O-Oh, I'm-" When she realized that it was only him, her shoulders sagged in relief," Lon'qu!" She pulled him into a tight hug," I'm glad you're alright. How did you escape her?"

Lon'qu furrowed his eyebrows in confusion," What are you talking about? Who would I have to escape from? Didn't I tell you that Hewitt and I were going to bring Robin back safely-"

"Didn't you hear?" Olivia furrowed her eyebrows," Robin was the one that shot Chrom."

The brunette saw Hewitt duck back from the corner of his eye and turned back to interrogate his girlfriend," I don't understand."

The dancer was quiet for a few seconds before gently hugging herself," I don't know if I do either. A few students came back half an hour ago to say that Robin had just shot both Chrom, Lucina, and Validar. I didn't believe them until Chrom and Lucina arrived with...," She squeezed her eyes shut," I don't know what to believe anymore. I thought I knew Robin, but-"

"You still do," Lon'qu stated firmly. He didn't care what the students said, there was no way that Robin would ever harm her family. The only explanation had to be the resemblance that Robin shared with Grima. Unfortunately, getting the students to believe that Robin had a lookalike that was older and more evil than her would be a hard task. No wonder it was easier for them to believe that Robin had done it," I'll be back."

Olivia practically dove forward and grabbed her boyfriend's arm, worry etched in all of her features. She scanned the area hesitantly before whispering," You know where she is, don't you?"

The police apprentice took a deep breath and nodded," I know that she didn't do it. When I found her, she was sobbing and asking if Chrom was still alive. Why would she kill him if she cared that much about him?"

The pink haired girl sighed hopelessly and pulled her boyfriend into an even tighter hug before," I can't tell you what to do, but please be careful. I...I couldn't bear to lose you."

Lon'qu managed a small smile and kissed the top of her head," I will."

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Hewitt was freaking out. How did word get out that Robin, out of all people, was the one to shoot Chrom and Lucina? Damn Grima! Damn her into oblivion! Why couldn't she leave his baby sister alone?! The black haired boy grimaced and entered an abandoned classroom, setting Robin gently on the counter before pacing. His sister watched him timidly, unaware of what was going on in his head," Hewitt..."

"I can't bring you to the hospital or even to Lissa or Libra," He growled," They all think that you hurt Chrom...," His eyes fell on her bloodied leg, causing his grimace to grow even larger," Dammit! How am I supposed to treat something like-"

Hold on. Anna mentioned something about knowing first aid. She wouldn't turn on Robin, even if she did turn out to be a crazy murderer. Maybe, if he retrieved her and brought her to Robin's side, they could save her from getting her injury infected.

There was only one problem; if he went to get her, that meant that he'd have to leave her alone for a few minutes. Then again, he couldn't risk her injury getting any worse. Hewitt took a deep breath before taking his sister's hands in his," Robin, I have to leave you behind-"

"What?!"

"Don't worry! It'll only be for a few minutes," He tried to soothe her worst fears, but his sister turned away and started shaking again," I need to get someone who can heal your leg."

Robin furrowed her eyebrows," Didn't you say-"

"Anna knows first aid," When he caught his sister's skeptical look, he scrambled to find something to say that would reassure her," We both know that she wouldn't give you away. Please, you're going to have to trust me on this."

The white haired girl bit her lip before giving him a small nod. As much as she hated the idea of being alone at the moment, she knew that she couldn't allow her injury to get any worse. She had to keep fighting, just like Chrom was," Don't take too long, okay?"

Hewitt gave her a thumbs up," I'll be back so soon that you won't realize that I was gone."

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Sumia knew that the rumor about Robin was a load of Pegasus dung before anybody could try and give her their faulty evidence. There was no way that Robin, her roommate and best friend, would ever do something that terrible. She also knew that word would get around, her friend was probably hiding until her name got cleared. She was probably alone and scared that the people she trusted most would turn on her.

That was why Sumia had grabbed Gaius and hastily whispered her plan into his ear," We need to find Robin."

The ginger glanced down at her with one eyebrow risen," You sure about this, Stumbles? It could be dangerous."

"If you're suggesting that I should be scared of Robin-"

"I'm not suggesting that at all, sweetheart. In fact, I think I'd be more afraid of her if we didn't go help her; Bubbles can hold a mean grudge," He joked," What I'm saying is that going up there with the threat of Grimleal is not the best idea."

Sumia looked to the side and fiddled with her hands," Well, I'm not saying that the Grimleal aren't frightening..."

"What are you saying, then?"

She smiled flirtatiously," How could I be scared of them when my big, strong boyfriend will protect me from danger?"

This seemed to convince the boy to go with her," Exactly! I know the Grimleal like I know the back of my hand. You'll be safe if you stick by me," He winked cheekily, causing his girlfriend to blush," Come on, let's sneak out of this sob fest before somebody can realize we're gone."

* * *

**Wasn't that more painful than you thought it'd be? Writing Inigo's reunion with Lucina was hard because the character is just as conflicted as we are. Inigo wants Lucina to be able to help her mother, but he also wants her to be safe. There is so much that he was holding back saying to her during his monologue. Basilio is also safe! That might be one of the only good things that came out of this chapter. Oh, and neither Chrom nor Lucina are dead, just badly injured. So, this was my plan for Robin the entire time. This was what she almost had to go through. Poor girl was terrified, especially with the guilt of thinking Chrom was dead on top of it. Lon'qu and Hewitt came just in the knick of time, but it didn't really turn out well for their conciouses. Gods, writing the Novak scene tore me apart even more than the previous one because of freaking Nah! She has known Novak longer, so his death had a huge impact on her (as you saw through her actions). We all know how Dimitri feels on the matter, but Ruby's reaction is somewhat interesting. I'll touch more on it in the next chapter. So, as Olivia said, most of the students are under the impression that Robin turned on them and shot both Chrom, Lucina, and Validar. The only ones that seem to be on her side are Hewitt, Lon'qu, Sumia, and Gaius. Will more people join that group, or is Robin in for a tough time? Find out in the next chapter! Review time!**

**SoaringHawk257:** **I laughed out loud when I read this review because of the context with the chapter I just wrote. Everything was so heavy and dreary, and then I have a new reader who is still near the beginning of the story with no idea how terrible it'll become. I'm glad that you like the story! It was almost a newsies AU, but I decided on band because I hold it close to my heart. Falchion as a trumpet it one of my favorites too! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Neph Champion:**** Thank you! YES, FREDDYxTHARJA LOVE JOIN ME IN MY SMALL GROUP OF SHIPPERS! I love Fates! I've already beat Conquest twice and I'm halfway through Hoshido. I have to say, Keaton is my new favorite husband in that game. Gotta love the wolf hubby. I will never get 100% either, because while I have shipped things other than Chrobin (I suprisingly like MaribellexChrom), I'm too lazy. I adore that headcannon, but seeing that I have two FemMorgan characters (Emmy and Levy) in this story, I'm gonna leave Morgan by himself. That's so cool! I love seeing other fellow writers! Thank you for reviewing!**

**The Payday:** **The screwed meter is off the charts! I still feel horrible about Novak, because his death means that I can't write his character ever again unless it's in a oneshot. I hate myself. Chrom is okay, but he's not in good shape. Robin almost got crossed out as well with the procedure! If Chrom had actually died, who knows how differently that would have turned out (*cough, hint, cough*). Yeah, the Shepherds parents kind of suck. Some of them are okay, though. I just don't mention them as much. Thank you for reviewing!**

**juddojuice:** **Ah yes, the angst is heavy is this section of the story. I actually re-read the beginning of my story for fun this morning (I didn't get very far. This story is a freaking novel), and I kept laughing because it was so fluffy and light-hearted (I also found that I wrote Chrom as smitten with Robin from the beginning and found it adorable). As horrible as it is, I knew that Novak had to die from the beginning. Maybe that's why I was so partial to him. He's was such a sweetheart that only wanted his parents and Lucina and Inigo to be happy and he didn't deserve to die! Thanks for the review!**

**Litwick723: ****Yay? I mean, the sadist in me is happy that you're reacting to my story in that way, but the humanatarian in me feels bad. Either way, thanks(?)! You made me realize that Chrobin hasn't kissed in awhile, and seeing that their interactions are going to be more limited in the future...Thanks for reviewing!  
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**What will happen next? Will Chrom and Robin reunite? Will Robin's name get cleared? Who will defeat Grima? Stay tuned to find out! We're nearing the end of the story, so buckle up your seatbelts and hold on for the rest of the ride! Thank you for reading, and I'll see you guys next week!**

**-Uprisingdragon**


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